London Calling
by beaglelover719
Summary: Emily reaches out to JJ for help with a problem she is facing. *Will start out with Emily and JJ but will have appearances by the whole team as the story progresses. Rating and genre will probably change as well. Emily and JJ will be pairing off but not with each other. :)
1. Chapter 1

**A/N - This is my first attempt at a multi-chapter story. Not going to lie; makes me kind of nervous. I have a few chapters already written but I don't have an ending figured out yet. I'm not sure how quickly I'll update because I have a horrible habit of re-reading and completely re-doing what I've written, which is why I have always done one offs and why this is so scary for me. So keep your fingers crossed and wish me luck! **

**I do not own Criminal Minds.**

**Chapter One**

Emily looked at the results in her hand with wide eyes. What the hell had she done? Her decision to go out with a bang, literally, was coming back to bit her in the ass big time. There was only one person that she knew she could turn to.

JJ frowned at the unfamiliar number that crossed her mobile screen. "Jareau."

"Jay?"

Recognition registered immediately. "Hey…"

"Don't say my name." Emily was quick to speak not wanting it to be known that she was on the other end of the line.

Puzzled by the request JJ uttered, "O-kay."

"Are you alone?"

JJ looked up to find a room full of seasoned profilers and a technical analyst staring at her. "No."

"Can you go somewhere private?"

Now seriously concerned she stood up from the conference room table and looked at Hotch. "I'm so sorry, I need to take this." She nodded at the phone.

"Go ahead." He replied, watching her curiously. Something he made a habit of doing since she pulled a runaway bride at her surprise wedding. At first they believed it was just the idea of having the event thrust upon her but in truth she had been regretting her spontaneous action at the hospital and the surprise wedding had forced her hand.

Hotch sighed heavily, losing focus for a brief moment. His entire team was in a state of flux. Emily had made the decision to leave the BAU for Interpol. Garcia was still struggling with the breakup of her relationship with Lynch. Something was bothering Morgan but he hadn't been able to ascertain what the root cause was; the normally upbeat man was decidedly melancholic. Rossi was carrying on a not so secret liaison with the BAU Chief. Only Reid seemed to be taking the changes in stride.

JJ moved into an empty conference room and closed the door, her heart racing wondering what could be going on with her friend. "Okay. I'm alone. What's going on Em? Are you okay?"

Emily moaned out a harsh. "No."

The sob sent a frisson of ice up JJ's back. "Is it Doyle? Did one of his associates find you? Where are you?"

"No, no, I'm okay, it's nothing like that. That I think I could handle." Emily groaned. "God, JJ, I don't know what to do. You're the only person I could think of to call."

This was a side of Emily that JJ never faced. "Okay sweetie, I can't help you if you don't tell me what's going on." JJ prodded.

Emily half laughed half sobbed and quietly confessed. "Jayje, I'm pregnant."

On the other end of the line JJ blinked. "Okay, I'm going to need you to repeat that, I could have sworn you just said you were pregnant."

"I did." She confirmed for her stunned friend.

"What! Are you sure?" JJ questioned.

"A doctor just confirmed what four home pregnancy tests told me." She curled up further in a ball. "I want you to come to London."

JJ looked at her phone, sure that it wasn't working correctly. "Okay, I really think I'm hearing things. I swear you just told me you wanted me to come to London."

Emily didn't bother to reassure her this time she just started in with her cajoling. "Can you Jayje, can you please? I can swing you a position here for as long as you want one, and it will help you get away from everything there."

It was JJ's turn to groan. "You can say his name you know." Emily was the only one that knew how truly antagonistic her relationship with Will had gotten once she said she couldn't marry him. "Can you imagine how Will would react to the idea of me taking Henry to England?" A small part of her, however, was intrigued with the idea of just getting away.

"But if you were able to get Will to agree to it, would you consider coming over here with me? Just until the baby is born and I get settled." The proficient profiler that she was Emily heard the tone in JJ's voice that she was looking for.

JJ sighed heavily torn between desire to help her friend out and the improbability of what she was asking. "Em, there's a large part of the story you're not telling me. Like, who the daddy is?" She knew for certain that Emily hadn't dated in a long while. She was aware of every man that she'd gone out with while they were working together and they spoke frequently enough to know that there was no one recently. She couldn't imagine that her friend had a one night stand but guessed anything was possible.

"I'll tell everything you once you get here." Emily bribed. "It's a long story, it would probably be best told with a bottle of wine. For you, of course, I'll have milk or something equally boring."

She couldn't believe that the idea of picking up and getting away from it all was actually appealing to her. She jumped at the knock on the door and sighed when Hotch popped his head in the opening.

"Hey. Are you okay, JJ?" His eyes were warm and concerned.

She smiled, the man was tuned in to his team and it was just like him to check up on her when she didn't return to the meeting. "I'm fine, Hotch, I'll just be a few minutes longer. I'm sorry."

"Don't apologize. I just wanted to make sure everything was okay." With that he backed out of the room.

Then suddenly the idea of getting away from it all didn't look so appealing. "Emily, I can't just leave Hotch. The team is still struggling with your being gone again."

"It's interesting how you say you can't leave Hotch _before_ you mention the team." She commented drily.

JJ rolled her eyes. "Well, he's my boss and he's the one that deals with the brunt of the crap from the team."

Emily didn't concede. "JJ, sometimes you have to do what's best for you. I know that I'm asking you for a huge favor, but this could also be a good thing for you." She waited a minute before adding. "You know, this would also look really good on your resume." She reasoned. "Besides, it's not like you owe any loyalty to Aaron Hotchner."

The comment sounded a touch bitter and a horrible thought came to JJ. "Please tell me he's not the father." She blurted out.

"What?"

"Emily I need you to tell me right now before we go any further, is Hotch your baby's father?" She needed to hear Emily deny it the mere idea of it was making her own stomach clench.

"God no." Emily scoffed.

Still not certain she pressed again. "Are you sure? What was that crap about not owing him any loyalty?"

"JJ, all I meant was when the State Department pulled a fast one he didn't save your job. He allowed you to be transferred." Her voice was steady and clear.

Not putting a name to the undeniable relief she was feeling she mumbled, "It was out of his control."

"You know," Emily added, not having missed the anxiety in JJ at the thought that he was responsible for her fate, "If you come to London you might be able to work through the fact that you're in love with him."

"I am not." The denial was automatic, but feeble.

Emily chuckled slightly. "Oh, JJ, you totally are. If I were sitting across from you right now I could call you out on how you're biting your bottom lip." She could visualize the blonde well enough to know that her comment would have caused JJ's eyes to widen and her mouth to drop. "I guess that, coupled with everything else, it's no wonder things didn't work out with Will. So, how long, Jay?"

Knowing that there was little use denying it JJ hung her head. "It's a long story, Em. However, mine probably requires a bottle or two of wine, at minimum."

Emily fully laughed at that. "Come to England JJ. I'm having a baby and I'm completely unprepared."

JJ snickered, "I'd make a comment about that being what happens when you aren't careful, but people in glass houses…"

Emily stared again at the confirmation she'd received at the doctor's office. "No, this shouldn't have happened. The doctors were sure this wouldn't happen, that I couldn't conceive, and even with that we did take precautions." She argued.

"Yeah, been there, done that." JJ sighed. And when she'd needed someone Emily had always been there. She was supportive throughout her pregnancy and again when she bailed on her wedding. She and Hotch were the only ones that didn't try to talk her into changing her mind. They accepted that she knew what it was she wanted to do.

Emily knew JJ well enough to know that she was considering what she'd just asked her and that she had to let JJ come to the decision on her own. "I can make it happen." She repeated softly.

"I know." It scared her how much she was seriously considering the possibility. Maybe a little time away might be beneficial.

"JJ?"

"Yeah?"

"I'll respect whatever decision you make but I need you to keep my pregnancy out of it. I'm not ready to share that news." Emily also knew JJ enough to know that she valued her own privacy and she wouldn't violate Emily's.

"Understood." She blew out a breath then asked, "When do you need to know?"

The smile was evident in Emily's voice as she responded, "It will take me a few days to get the ball rolling so the sooner the better."

"Okay. I'll get back to you soon." JJ disconnected the call and sat in stunned silence. She still had a lot of details she needed to work through but she was going to London.

**Thank you for taking the time to read. Please let me know what you think! Reviews are sincerely appreciated. **


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N – I do not own Criminal Minds. This chapter focuses mainly on JJ. I'm really struggling with the chapter stuff. I had everything written then I went back and made changes. Please bear with me.**

**Chapter Two**

JJ had known the call to Hotch's office would be coming she just hadn't expected it to be so soon. Nor had she expected him to be quite so pissed.

"Did you know?" He waved a piece of paper in his hand at her.

"Did I know what?" She asked wide eyed.

He raised an eyebrow able to see right through her charade. "You're a horrible liar. Of course you knew." He flung the paper on his desk. "Why didn't you tell me JJ? If you were so unhappy here why didn't you tell me? You know I would have done…"

"Hotch," she interrupted, laying her hand on his arm, "It's not that I'm unhappy here. It's just that…" How did she explain it him that this was just something that she needed to do? She shook her head. "This is a really good opportunity. Working with Interpol," she rationalized, "will look good on my resume." The explanation sounded lame when Emily used it and even more so when she used it on Hotch.

He scrubbed a hand over his face and sunk into his desk chair, his displeasure still evident. "Will is okay with this?"

JJ smiled tightly. "Will's not pleased with anything I do lately. But actually he's okay with this." She didn't feel the need to share with him that it was after a very long, very vocal, argument he finally conceded to allow her to take Henry and accept the short term assignment to London. She also didn't include Will's comment that at least in London she would be away from the man he felt was to blame for JJ's reluctance to pledge her life to him.

JJ sank into a chair across from Hotch. "I think he's convinced himself that absence will make my heart grow fonder." She curled her legs underneath her. "He has an opportunity to do some undercover work that he's determined to do." She remembered the gleam in his eyes as he relayed the information to her.

Hotch grimaced. "Undercover work is often dangerous."

She nodded, "Yeah, I know. I'm sure that's why he volunteered for the assignment." The look she shot Hotch was full of self-loathing. "Maybe if he gets killed this time then I'll really feel bad for not marrying him."

"JJ." His voice held a gentle reproof.

"Maybe if I'm gone for six months he'll have a chance to move on and get over it." She replied remorsefully.

"I'm not sure losing you is something you get over that easily."

She looked at him sharply, uncertain if they were still discussing Will. There was a touch of red on his cheeks that made her wonder if he was as indifferent to her as she always supposed. The mere thought that he might not be was a touch exhilarating.

"He loved you, JJ. Hell I'm sure he probably still loves you. He's hurting." Hotch reasoned. "I'm not sure that going undercover is wise." He frowned. "I sincerely hope his commanding officer considered this before signing off on it."

JJ could only smile at him, leave it to Hotch to be concerned. As flippant as she sounded she was genuinely concerned for her son's father as well. "Do you know that you are by far the most decent man I've ever known?"

"Then why are you leaving me?" He tapped the paper that he so carelessly tossed on his desk. "Help me understand this JJ."

"I'm in a rut and I need to break out of it. This will help me." She looked at him with solemn eyes. "It's only for six," she winced, then groaned, "Okay maybe eight months, but I have every intention of coming back."

He stared at her intently for a long minute before asking, "There's nothing I can say or do to convince you to change your mind?"

He looked so sad that it almost broke her resolve. All the pleading Will did hadn't affected her, but the somber look on Hotch's face had her throat tightening and her eyes tearing. She didn't want to leave him. Maybe an extended leave would help _her_ get over _him_.

She shook her head sadly as the first tear fell.

"That's not really encouraging me to be supportive, JJ." His voice was hoarse, indicating the fact that the tears bothered him but he remained stoically in his chair.

"Will you help me tell the team?" She asked in a small voice.

He grimaced slightly and she thought he was going to say no before he bit out a harsh. "Fine."

Her chin wobbled and she said. "Will you drive me and Henry to the airport?" Before he could respond she pleaded again. "Garcia will only try to change my mind. Reid would only question my reasoning for taking the assignment. Morgan," she paused for a moment. "Actually I'm not sure about Morgan he's not acting like himself lately. Have you noticed?"

He graced her with a rare smile. "Yeah, I've noticed."

"Of course you have." She grinned back even as she wiped the tears from her cheeks.

"You don't think Will would want to drive you to the airport?" He questioned, getting back to their former topic of discussion.

JJ shrugged. "He'll make it weird. He'll want to make a big production and I'll lose control of the situation." She truly didn't want to hurt the man but she would only continue to do so as long as she remained with him.

Hotch sighed heavily and conceded to her request. "I'll take you to the airport if that's what you want."

She rewarded him with a bright, albeit slightly leaky, smile. "Thank you. Now what are we going to tell the team?"

As they sat gathered around the conference room JJ kept looking to Hotch for support. Something he was fully aware of, as was the group of seated profilers.

"I just wanted to let you all know that we will be having Alex Blake join us, she is going to replace the position that was left vacant by Emily's move to Interpol." He spared a glance at both Reid and Rossi aware that both agents were familiar with Alex. Morgan and Penelope were busy scowling he could only guess how well they would mesh with the no-nonsense agent.

"She'll be a good fit." Rossi commented.

"It won't be like Emily." Penelope pouted.

Resisting the urge to roll his eyes Hotch agreed, "No it won't be like Emily, but then again Emily wasn't exactly a smooth fit when she first arrived either." He smiled at the memory. "Alex Blake is a good agent and will be a valuable team member. Hopefully some of the qualities you admired in Emily you'll be able to see in Alex." He glanced at Penelope. "I hope that you will give her the opportunity to prove that before you cast any judgment."

"Yes sir." The sullen technical analyst mumbled.

Hotch squeezed Penelope's shoulder. "Okay." He paused and shot a warning glance at JJ. "I have one more piece of news. I recently got a request for assistance asking specifically for JJ." He smiled as Penelope gasped and Rossi harrumphed. He held up his hand. "Listen, everyone seated at this table knows JJ's value to the team; additionally she made quite a reputation for herself when she was at the State Department. This role is not permanent and her position will be waiting for her when the assignment is over."

"Okay, quit the snow job, where is this assignment? The Pentagon? Homeland Security?" Rossi questioned, then looking directly at JJ. "Did you have a choice this time? Because I have a little pull…"

JJ shook her head, "Ew, gross, I know you have a little pull." She used her fingers to simulate quotes. "This was totally my call. Hotch is supportive of it."

"What aren't you saying, Jayje, where are you going?" Morgan wanted to know.

JJ looked at Hotch for a little moral support. "Actually I'm going to go to London and work with Emily." She mumbled.

"You can't go to London!" Penelope erupted. "That's insane, you belong here, your job is here, Will is here, Henry is here."

"My job will be here when I return." JJ replied adding, "Will has agreed to let me take Henry to London…"

"That makes no sense, how are you going to fix…"

"Baby Girl." Morgan interrupted her before she could finish her sentence.

"I get what Penelope is saying," Reid, as naively clueless as always he finished her thought, "How are you going to repair your relationship with Will if you take off to London?"

Two bright spots of color rode JJ's cheeks as she looked at both Reid and Penelope. "This is hardly the place to be discussing my personal relationship with Henry's father. This opportunity is a good one, probably a once in a lifetime chance."

"There are so many great places to go." Rossi stated. "I'll make you a list."

Thankful for his support JJ smiled at him embarrassedly.

"The decision is solely JJ's and it has already been made. The request came through formal channels and has been vetted and approved by both myself and Section Chief Strauss. There is nothing further to discuss." He pinned both Garcia and Reid with a look. "I expect that everyone will be supportive and wish JJ great success."

JJ swallowed the lump that formed in her throat during Hotch's dialog. Sneaking a peek at Reid and Penelope she knew that she hadn't heard the end of it from them. Her theory was right when Penelope latched on to her arm as soon as Hotch went through the door.

"What are you thinking, JJ?" Penelope hissed.

"I'm thinking that this is a good idea for me." JJ snapped, angry that Penelope refused to accept that her relationship with Will was over. "I don't know how many times I have to tell you that Will and I are not getting back together."

Penelope shook her head. "You know that he wants to make it work, JJ."

Sighing, JJ calmly stated. "But it's not, Pen, and marriage isn't going to solve our problems. I'm sorry that you can't understand or respect that but I know what is best for me."

"Well it seems to me like you're running away."

"You know what, Pen? I am. I totally am. And I hope that while I'm away Will has an opportunity to really get some clarity on our relationship and see that this is for the best." She was starting to lose her patience with her friend.

"Will is a great guy, JJ." Penelope argued.

"You're absolutely right, he is. You know who else is great? Kevin. Maybe you should focus on your relationship instead of mine."

Penelope blinked at JJ's sharp tone. "Kevin is already dating other women."

"Because you told him you weren't ready to be married."

Garcia eyes got wide and she looked around to see if anyone overheard. "How did you know that?"

"I spoke to him." JJ responded, matter of factly.

"You did what?!" Penelope sputtered indignantly.

JJ shrugged, "I figure if you felt it was okay to butt into my private affairs turnabout was fair play."

Garcia gaped, stuttered, and then sighed. "I'm sorry." Her shoulders slumped. "I guess I had that coming?"

JJ leaned forward and pulled her friend into a hug. "I don't want to fight with you, Pen." She squeezed the normally bubbly blonde. "I get that you may not always _like_ what I do, but you really don't get a say in how I live my life."

"Are you sure?" Penelope asked.

JJ grinned. "Pretty sure."

"I'm really going to miss you." She pouted.

Throwing an arm around her, JJ led Penelope out of the conference room. "I'll be back before you know it."

**Thank you for reading, hope you enjoyed. Emily will be back next chapter! A huge thank you to all that reviewed and followed this story, I hope it lives up to your expectations!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: I don't own.**

**A/N: Most of you probably already know or have an idea who the daddy is, especially if you've read anything else I've written. This chapter will clear that up for the reader. So far this has been my favorite chapter to write. I hope you enjoy it.**

Emily winced when she got the not so politely worded email from Hotch advising her that JJ would be available to liaise with Interpol per her request. She felt a small twinge of guilt but pushed it aside. She knew she'd done the right thing by contacting JJ. Right now Emily needed her more than Hotch did. He could get over it.

She ran a hand over her slightly distended stomach in awe. She was going to be a mom.

She glanced up as her desk phone rang. "Prentiss."

"Well, it's a done deal." JJ's voice announced.

"I know. I got a lovely letter of acceptance from your boss." Emily snickered. "I'm fairly certain he wants to kill me."

JJ chuckled. "Be forewarned, Penelope is not happy with you."

"Should I anticipate a virus?" God only knew what kind of hell Garcia could unleash.

"I think we both know there is no way to anticipate anything that Pen sends you." She snorted, "You just deal with the fall out."

"Was it that bad?"

JJ sighed. "Worse."

Emily heard the emotion in JJ's voice and couldn't stop from asking. "What happened?"

"Pen was surprisingly belligerent, Reid argued, Morgan insulted me and Rossi started giving advice on good places to visit." She laughed.

"What about Hotch?" She grilled, imagining that she could already see the way JJ's eyes glazed over as she bit her lip.

"He was disappointed that I didn't talk to him about it before hand but he will support my decision." She sniffled. "He said that my job would be waiting for me when I decided to come back home."

"You still okay doing this?" Emily had to ask even though she worried that she wouldn't like the answer JJ gave her. She knew that she would be sorely disappointed if JJ changed her mind but she had to give her the option.

"I'm committed, Em. Like it or not I'll be there by the end of next week."

They said their goodbyes and Emily relaxed in her office chair. She did feel a bit manipulative but she really needed a friend. Plus she really needed to figure out what to do about her baby's daddy. She read the last email that Morgan sent her. He wanted to come and visit. Boy wouldn't he be in for a surprise?

She grinned as her phone indicated that she had a text. "Look baby, its daddy. He doesn't know about you yet because your mommy is a chicken." She read the email and picked up on both the hurt and the anger it conveyed regarding her decision to have JJ come over from the BAU. If he was mad now she could hardly imagine how he'd feel when she told him her other news. "Let's hope you're not stupid like your mom." Emily said to her stomach, and then despite everything, grinned at how ridiculous she was being. It had only been a short time since she realized that she was expecting and she was already over the moon about the life she carried inside her. Who would have known?

Sighing lightly she returned her focus to the files in front of her. Life at Interpol was much different from the BAU and she was honestly having trouble finding her groove. The personal upheaval in her life wasn't helping. Her phone buzzed again and she groaned at the interruption. Not bothering to look at caller id she answered the call.

"So I guess this means that you don't want me to fly over for a visit?"

Emily winced, wishing she took better precaution before answering the phone. "Derek. Hi." She nervously bit her lip. "I'm glad you called." She paused for a moment. "You know that I would love for you to visit. Any time you wanted, it's just been crazy here. There is still so much to learn, so much protocol that is so different from how we operated. Sometimes I wonder if I was crazy for making this move."

"Why JJ?" He questioned abruptly.

"Because JJ handles the press better than anyone else I know, and I'm hoping she can teach the group that I have over here how to do it as well." She honestly answered. "Plus I think it would be good for JJ to get away."

Morgan sighed. "She's having a hard time." It was a statement, not a question.

"It hasn't been easy." Emily replied. "You know she didn't just flip a switch and decide not to marry Will." Emily's defense of JJ was automatic.

"I know that, it was just odd, one minute she wants to get married and the next minute she's got the worst case of cold feet I've ever seen."

"Adrenaline, the thought of losing Will permanently sent her into a tail spin. Had Rossi not thrown a wedding together it would have probably been the longest engagement in history."

"So this isn't you trying to get more than just mileage distance from me?"

"No. This is me being selfish and using my business need to maybe help a friend."

The line was silent for a minute before Morgan announced. "So I'm thinking Thanksgiving."

"Thanksgiving?" She croaked.

"I have some vacation, I think I'll come and visit you during Thanksgiving." He clarified.

"Won't your mom and sisters be upset?" Mentally she was calculating how big she would be at Thanksgiving.

Derek groaned, obviously not having thought about his mom's reaction to her only son missing a cherished family tradition. "It's only one holiday, they can do without me." His tone wasn't very convincing.

Emily chuckled and called him on it. "Listen, it doesn't matter, I do want you to visit, whenever you can fit it in. If Thanksgiving won't work I won't be offended."

"I really want to see you. I think we left some things unfinished."

"Unfinished?" Emily squeaked.

"Maybe that's the wrong word." Derek replied. "We should have talked about what happened…"

Emily braced herself as he paused, then swore.

"Damn it. I've got to go, looks like we've caught a new case." His voice dropped an octave, "plus I think this is a conversation that we need to have in person."

Her heart fluttered. "Okay."

"I will see you soon, Emily." He promised.

"I'm counting on it." She placed her phone down on the desk and stared at it for a minute. That would have probably been a good time to tell the father of her baby he was going to be a dad. Maybe. Probably not, that wasn't the kind of thing you shared over the phone, was it? She dropped her head on the desk. Maybe she could write him a letter?

It was almost an hour later while reading a file on drug trafficking that her phone rang again. Sighing at the interruption she answered with a brisk "Prentiss."

"You better make damn sure you watch her back while she's over there with you."

Emily smiled at the terse directive. "Yes, I understood that clearly from your email earlier. Hello, Hotch, how are you?"

"I'm pissed that you went to my agent before you came to me." He bluntly stated.

"Yes sir, you made that clear as well."

"Damn it, Emily." Hotch paused, as if unsure what he wanted to say.

"You did tell JJ you supported her decision."

"I do," Hotch snapped, "but it doesn't mean that I like it."

Emily smiled leave it to Hotch to be as unabashedly honest as always. "I'll take good care of her and promise to return her to you unscathed."

"I'll hold you to that promise." He replied gruffly. Then as if almost an afterthought, "I assume that you are settled in and doing well?"

"I'm fine, Hotch."

"You're missed here at the BAU, you know, you ever want to come back…" He let the statement drop off.

"I might be a little happier to hear that if I didn't know that you said that to all the girls." Emily joked.

Hotch chuckled, the sound sweeter for its rarity. "You always were a wise ass." He sighed, "I won't keep you. Stay in touch and let me know if there is anything you need."

Emily was grinning as she sat the phone down again wondering when she could expect to hear from Dave, Reid, and Penelope.

~~CM~~CM~~CM~~

The day had finally come JJ took one last look around her small home and took a deep breath Hotch would be there shortly; almost as quickly as the thought entered her head the doorbell rang announcing his arrival.

JJ climbed into the passenger seat and sighed. Her emotions were all over the place now that she was truly on her way. Her goodbye with Will had been tense. She sensed that he was slowly coming to the realization that they weren't going to reconcile. Especially after her telling him that it would be a good time for him to find other living arrangements while she was gone. He hadn't even stayed to oversee her departure with Hotch. Which had been fine with JJ because having Penelope there had been hard enough, Pen hadn't stopped crying, which made JJ cry, which made Henry cry. Tears made Henry cranky, which hopefully would make him sleepy because the drive to Dulles was not going to be fun otherwise.

"You want to explain to me again why you thought this would be the best time of day for a flight out?" Hotch looked over at JJ questioningly as they made their way through the rush hour traffic.

"I wanted to make my leaving as annoying as possible so you didn't forget me too quick." She quipped, smiling warmly at the handsome man.

"I couldn't forget you if I tried." He winked over at her. "That reminds me. Jack made you a card." He reached beside his seat and handed her a card made out of construction paper with hearts drawn all over it.

The wink had her heart tripping, the card had it breaking. "Have fun in England JJ and Henry. I will miss you. Love, Jack." JJ read the card aloud and sniffled at the reversed J's. "This is so sweet." She traced the J in Jack with her finger. "Please tell Jack I said thank you and let him know that I loved the card."

"I'll make sure he sends you one for all the holidays. He'll get a kick out of it." He reached over the console and squeezed her knee. "He'll be very happy to know that you liked it."

Thankfully Henry did indeed fall asleep by the time they had hit I-66. Otherwise the sight of his mother in tears would have set him off once more.

"I didn't think it would be this hard." JJ admitted, biting her bottom lip.

"You don't have to do this JJ. I'll smooth out any repercussions."

His offer had the tears starting in earnest. "I made a commitment." She wiped at them embarrassedly. "I'm sorry, this is me being silly. I'm fine. It's not like I'm not coming back, right?"

They were stopped at a light and he turned to her fully. "You better be coming back. I have enough people pissed at me for approving this temporary assignment. Besides the only reason I agreed to it was because you promised it would only be six, worst case eight months." His complete recall of her statement coupled with his penetrating stare had her heart kicking up again.

The rest of the ride was quiet. Both of them were realizing that this would be the last opportunity they would see one another for quite a while, and both were feeling the loss already. He surprised her when he parked the car rather than dropped her off in front of the airport while giving her a clipped. "I told you I would see you off."

Henry, exhausted from the excitement of the last few days was dead to the world, barely stirring when Hotch lifted him from the car seat. "Let me help you get through checking your bags."

JJ, not eager to part with him, readily agreed and allowed him to use his badge to escort her to where she would board the plane. He was able to lay Henry down on a bench and sat down across from him.

It seemed as though they just sat down when the attendants began to announce the boarding of United Airlines Flight 1020 from Washington Dulles to London Heathrow.

JJ turned to Hotch, her voice breaking. "That's us." She stood up and made a move to go and pick up Henry.

"JJ." His voice stopped her and without a thought she turned and threw herself into his arms.

She didn't concern herself with any thoughts of impropriety. Her feelings for the man far surpassed any concern that she was being inappropriate. "I am going to miss you so much," she sobbed.

"Just make sure you don't forget me." He eased back to look down at her, his eyes conveying what neither of them were quite ready to admit.

"How could I?" She questioned, looking up at him with red-rimmed swollen eyes.

"Then you won't mind if I give you something to remember me by." Then his mouth was on hers, hot and demanding.

"You're not making this any easier." She mumbled against his lips, reluctant to break away completely.

He smiled. "No, I'm sure that I just made things more difficult, but I'm afraid it was necessary." He pressed another quick, yet chaste, kiss on her lips. "At least it was for me."

"You have crap timing." JJ stated as she pressed her mouth to his and allowed him to deepen the kiss once more. She was thrilled that the man kissed like he did everything else, expertly.

Breaking from the kiss, Hotch stared down at her. "You let me know when you're ready to talk about this." He stepped back as they announced her flight once more.

JJ watched as he moved over to Henry, gently waking and setting him up. She couldn't hear what was being said but she watched as her son solemnly nodded at Hotch before hugging him tight. Then his sweet little hand was grasping hers.

"Make sure you call me when you land." Hotch thumbed a tear from her cheek. "I don't care what time it is, I want you to call me." He placed another soft kiss against her lips. "Take care of your mommy for me Henry." He gently tousled her son's hair. Then he was gone, leaving her confused and conflicted and oddly jubilant. Aaron Hotchner most definitely had feelings for her.

**Thank you for reading! Also, I just want to give a huge thank you for those that have taken the time to review and follow this story. It truly means a great deal to me. **


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: I don't own Criminal Minds**

The flight was only supposed to have been seven and half hours but they had sat on the runway at Dulles for almost an hour due to a rain delay before finally taking off and they were delayed upon arrival at Heathrow for almost another hour due to a medical emergency. Both JJ and Henry were antsy by the time they actually departed the plane.

Emily was there to greet them when they deplaned.

Hugs exchanged JJ looked in stunned disbelief at her friend. "I know you told me you were pregnant but it's such a shock to actually see you pregnant." The brunette had a very slight bump.

"How do you think I feel?" Emily scoffed. "I thought I was just gaining weight!"

JJ shook her head. "You look incredible Em. Seriously." She looked at her glowing friend. "Okay, let's go find our luggage and get out of here. We're both starved, aren't we buddy?" JJ looked down at her son, who despite everything had really behaved beautifully.

"I'm really glad you came." Emily hugged her tightly again. Emotion overwhelming her, she hadn't realized how much she had missed her former coworker until she saw her walking towards her. She laughed as she stepped back. "Sorry, hormonal pregnant lady."

"Oh sweetie, you haven't seen anything yet." JJ laughed suddenly very happy that she would get to experience all those events with her friend. As they moved through the airport towards luggage claim JJ responded to a few texts from a concerned Will, Spence and Pen, promising to contact them all later.

After claiming their suitcases the small group decided to stop while still at the airport for a quick bite to eat rather than trying to find something on the way back to Emily flat. Henry was still very well behaved but JJ didn't want to push it.

They were in a taxi on the way back to Emily's flat when JJ's phone rang. "What happened to calling me when you landed?"

"I didn't forget." JJ protested. "I was going to call you when we got settled at Emily's."

There was a heavy sigh on the other end of the line. "Everything go okay? Did Henry travel well?"

JJ smiled at the obvious concern evident in his voice. "Everything went fine; we had a rain delay at Dulles and some medical emergency when we landed at Heathrow. Henry had a brief moment during the flight but I was able to distract him with some games I downloaded on the Ipad. Crisis averted." She reported.

"Okay, well I'll let you go. I just wanted to make sure everything was okay." It was obvious that neither wanted to end the call.

"Everything's fine." Her voiced lowered an octave. "I'm glad you called."

"I'm probably going to do it from time to time." Hotch paused a moment. "Is that going to be a problem?"

"No, I think I expect you to." She retorted. "I imagine that I'll probably be calling you on occasion as well."

He cleared his throat. "Good. You take care of yourself JJ, and if you need anything, make sure you call me."

"I will." She breathed then admitted, "You're making me regret my decision."

"Now you tell me," he groaned, "If only I would have gone with my impulse when I saw that fucking request." He complained. "Just do me a favor and try not to fall for any surly, tea swilling Brit while you're over there."

Feeling emboldened by the distance, and the kisses he planted on her at the airport, she responded honestly. "Not a chance, there's a tea swilling, surly American that I'm already pretty fond of and have every intention of returning home to." She blushed, knowing that Emily was overhearing the entire conversation.

He chuckled. "Good. I'll be waiting for you." He let that statement set for a minute. "I'll let you go now and get settled but I'll be talking to you soon and often."

"Okay. Bye." She disconnected the phone and was still grinning when she glanced up and met Emily's amused eyes.

"Will?" She asked, nodding at the phone. At JJ's scowl she giggled. "Oh, it must have been Reid."

"Shut up, Emily."

"So how is Hotch?"

"Hotch kissed mommy." Henry piped up from between them.

"Did he?" Emily's smile grew even wider as he looked from Henry to JJ. "How long has that been going on? I don't think I got a kiss when I left."

"Someone obviously gave you something." JJ stared pointedly at Emily's stomach. "Let's not forget why I'm here."

"Is this your way of telling me you don't want to talk about Hotch yet?" Emily laughed.

JJ blushed as she ran her hand through her son's soft hair. "No. Not yet." She breathed a sigh of relief when Emily didn't push it. The change in the dynamic of her relationship with Hotch was too new and she needed a while to process it herself.

She was brought out of her reverie when they arrived at Emily's flat. The pictures she had emailed didn't do it justice. Even Henry was impressed and that was a hard task. There was an open living plan, three bedrooms, a dine-in spacious kitchen, but the best feature was the wall of tall windows that overlooked a park. She could imagine spending happy weekends with Henry there.

The living space was smaller than they were used to especially as she and Henry would be sharing a room since the third one was going to be used as a nursery. She just hoped her young son wouldn't form a habit that would be hard to break once they returned stateside.

In a surprisingly short period of time they were settled in. They still had boxes that were being shipped, more clothes and some books and toys for Henry but for the most part they were settled. Now they just had to figure out the sitter and work situation.

While Henry was forming an attachment to Sergio, JJ took the opportunity to contact her mom, Will and Penelope to let them know that the pair had arrived at the flat safely and were settling in. Will and Penelope both took the opportunity to complain once again that they weren't the one that drove the pair to the airport, each wrongly assuming that the other was responsible for the slight – a fact JJ did nothing to correct. All three hinted at the possibility of a future visit, which she did nothing to encourage.

Coming out of the bedroom JJ smiled as she spotted Henry fast asleep on the sofa, Sergio snuggled by his side. She foresaw a pet in their near future. Turning she headed to the kitchen to find Emily quietly working. "Hey."

Emily looked up and smiled. "Hey there, everyone notified?"

JJ rolled her eyes. "Yes." She pulled out a seat and sank down into it. "I think I'll be emailing Will and Pen for a while. Both are perturbed that they were not the ones to see Henry and I off at the airport."

Emily grimaced, "point them towards one another and your problems are solved."

"Ha," JJ scoffed, "if only. Pen is still smarting from the break up with Kevin but she won't do anything about it. Morgan used to be a good sounding board for her but something has been going on with him too, I don't know…" She stopped midsentence and looked up at her friend. "Oh my God."

"What?"

JJ shook her head. "Don't you what me, Emily Prentiss."

"I have no idea what you're talking about, JJ." She replied, but the sight of her picking at her nails was all the evidence that JJ needed.

"You realize that I would have figured this out sooner if I didn't have my own drama to deal with."

"You mean Hotch?"

"Nuh uh." She wagged a finger at her. "Nice try. First, Hotch is not part of my drama. He's the only bright spot in my messed up world, besides Henry of course." She shrugged at Emily. "I'm not sure what that means yet. But you are not going to distract me with Aaron Hotchner. We are going to sit here while you explain how it is you are pregnant with Derek's baby and why the hell you haven't told him yet?"

Emily sighed. "It's a really long story and I don't come out looking too good in it."

JJ lifted a perfectly shaped eyebrow. "I'm not going anywhere for a couple of months so get talking."

Emily stood up, "come on, if we're doing this now I want to be comfortable."

JJ followed her into the family room and watched as Emily curled herself into the overstuffed chair and before long it all spilled out. JJ had shared with her friends her decision not to marry Will but she never discussed with them what had happened after she fled Rossi's home on the night of the would be wedding. Or more specifically what happened with the team that she left behind that evening.

She didn't know Penelope and Kevin spent the evening trading longing glances, both wanting so badly to reconcile but neither knowing how. Or that Beth and Hotch danced and flirted, but when Hotch staunchly supported JJ's decision their short lived romance fizzled rather quickly. She was aware that Rossi and Strauss had not so secretly rekindled an old romance, but not that it caught spark on the same night.

"It just happened, JJ." Emily shrugged, "we were dancing, then he drove me home and then," she rubbed a hand over her stomach. "I had already made the decision to leave the BAU I think it was just two lonely people wanting to be less lonely."

JJ listened in silence. Obviously Emily had convinced herself that their affair was as simple as that but she could tell from looking at Emily it was more. Plus she'd known there was something off with Morgan as well. "Do you regret it?"

"No." She blushed, "It was nice." She rolled her eyes as JJ stared at her pointedly. "Okay, it was smoking hot, animalistic sex. It was fantastically unbelievable."

JJ grimaced. "I wasn't asking for a critique of his performance!" They both laughed for a moment then JJ asked somberly. "I don't understand Emily, why haven't you told Derek?"

"I don't know, Jay." Emily whined. "I've had the conversation a thousand times in my head, but when I actually talk to him I just can't make myself tell him."

Remembering the feeling too well herself JJ quietly stated, "Yeah, I know what you mean. But Em, Derek needs to know."

Emily shook her head. "He doesn't deserve to have his life turned upside down because we made a decision to celebrate my leaving in style."

JJ laughed, "You made the decision to celebrate together and you made that baby together. Guess what, you suffer the consequences together." She shook her head. "If he finds out before you tell him, like I don't know, when he comes for that visit he keeps talking about, he's not going to be happy. The longer you wait, the angrier he's going to be. Trust me, I speak from experience."

"Okay, let's talk about that. Say I tell him and he thinks this is a good reason to get together?"

JJ stopped her with a hand in the air. "Whoa, whoa, whoa, don't borrow trouble. Don't look at my failed relationship as a reference guide. I made way too many mistakes along the way. A baby does not a family make."

Emily glanced down at her stomach. "But you loved Will once, right?"

JJ was silent a really long time, so long that Emily wondered if she was going to answer her. "I think I wanted it to be more than it was. Will is a terrific guy, he really is. I _should_ be in love with him, I _should_ want to marry him but in the end I just don't."

Emily looked at her with sympathy. "JJ."

"I know, I'm horrible," She sighed. "Do you see now why I couldn't marry him? He deserves better."

"Jay," JJ looked up to find tears flowing down Emily's face. "I'm in love with Derek. What if he feels like that about me?"

"Oh Sweetie," JJ hurriedly looked for a box of tissues. Spotting them she bounced up and gave them to her friend. "At least give him a chance. I'm not sorry that I took a chance on Will, I'm sorry that I couldn't be what he needed me to be. I didn't marry him because I do love him, he deserves to have someone completely devoted to him, but so do I and we can't get that if we're together. You don't know how Derek feels you're projecting my failed relationship on yourself." She leaned forward and kissed her friend's forehead. "Call Derek, you're just making the situation harder than it has to be."

"I can't." Emily sobbed. "I don't think I could handle it if he decided he didn't want anything to do with us."

"You're being ridiculous." JJ argued. "You know that's not going to happen."

"It could."

"Fine," JJ agreed, "It could. But you know it's not going to. He was upset that you brought me over here instead of him. He's planning on a trip over here to see you. That sounds like a man that's missing you, not one that wants to cut all contact. If Derek Morgan was doing his normal hit it and quit it routine you wouldn't have heard from him at all." JJ bluntly pointed out.

"You're right, I'll call him." Emily agreed.

"When?" JJ pushed.

"Soon."

JJ would have pushed further but Emily's cell started to chirp and then she was racing out the door. JJ knew that she was going to have to push a lot harder to get her friend to make that call. That or she was going to have to get really sneaky and get Derek to London.

**Thank you for reading! I promise I'm not baiting you along. Derek is going to find out next chapter. Again, I'd like to give a huge thank you for those that have taken the time to review and follow this story. I hope you're still sticking with me and you're still interested in it. **


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer: I do not own Criminal Minds.**

**A/N: It's finally time to let Derek in on the secret. Hope you enjoy.**

It took JJ two solid weeks of nagging before Emily was prepared to make the call. Even then she was beyond nervous. "Do you think I should Skype him?"

JJ titled her head. "You know, that's not the worst idea. Then you'd be able to see his reaction."

Emily touched her stomach, a gesture that was rapidly becoming a habit. "I feel like I could barf."

"Oh sweetie, that's just baby Morgan, he or she is excited that you're finally telling their daddy."

Emily stuck out her tongue at the sassy blonde. "You suck, you know that, right?"

JJ just laughed. "You are such a bad influence." She turned to Henry who was watching the entire exchange. "Aunt Em is really grouchy but that's no excuse for behaving badly."

Emily blanched as she realized what she just did and said in front of the impressionable young boy. "I'm going to be a horrible mom." Then she went over to Henry. "I am so sorry for being bad."

"You're funny." The little imp smiled up at her and Emily's eyes started to fill prompting the little boy to jump from his seated position and hug his honorary aunt. "Don't cry, Aunt Em. You're not really bad." He turned to JJ. "Mommy tell her, tell her she's not bad."

Emily looked down at the sweet boy. "You know Henry if this baby is anything like you I'm going to be really lucky."

JJ smiled sweetly at the pair. Henry was adjusting well to the change that had been forced upon him. After several interviews, they found a sitter that would watch Henry while they were here and would eventually be responsible for the baby. JJ would start working on Monday. Everything was moving along except Emily. "Okay, that's it. You're stalling." She pointed towards Emily's room.

"You're a spoilsport." She dropped a kiss on Henry's head. "I have to go and make a call buddy. But I might need another hug later, okay?"

Making her way back to her room she sent a quick text to see Morgan was even available. The quick affirmative reply made her smile and before she could chicken out her laptop was signaling that he was calling her. She sat down at her desk and accepted the call.

"There she is." Emily watched as his glance drank in her face. "Damn I've missed you."

"I've missed you too." She bit her lip as tears welled up.

"Hey, what's going on?" His concern for her was clearly evident in his expression.

She wiped at her eyes and shook her head. "It's just me being silly." She gave him a luminous smile. "It's really good to see you."

"I've been telling you for weeks that I want to come over and really see you." He winked. "Then maybe you could explain to me why you really had to poach my girl JJ. You know that you've disrupted the whole BAU flow. Poor Hotch is a little lost."

Emily leaned in conspiratorially, "I think there might be something going on between the two of them."

Morgan raised a brow, "Really going on or just that thing they have between them."

"I think that thing is bigger than any of us thought. I think they like each other." She confided.

"Like they want to see each other naked, like each other?"

Emily nodded. "**Exactly** like that. Henry told me that Hotch kissed JJ at the airport."

Morgan threw his head back and laughed.

"What?" She asked, smiling at his obvious glee.

"Are you kidding me, you're getting our intel from a four year old?"

Emily giggled and shrugged, "Whatever, it's a reliable source."

They grinned at each other for a full minute. "Damn Princess, I sure do miss you."

The fluttering of her stomach, probably a natural reaction to his handsomeness, had her sobering. "Derek I need to tell you something."

His grin slowly faded. "Why don't I like the sound of that?" His eyes were busily scanning her expression trying to get a read on her.

"It's not bad. Well I don't think it's bad. I hope you don't think it's bad." She blew out a nervous breath. "You might be mad though. But before you get mad I need you to know that I didn't know it was going to happen and I didn't realize it happened myself until…"

"Christ, you've met someone." He interrupted.

"No." Emily shook her head. "No it's not that, I promise you it's not that."

"Really, because I hardly ever hear from you anymore." His voice was a touch bitter. "And when you decided to bring someone over from the BAU you went with JJ."

"I told you, JJ is here to work with my team on working with the media. That's her wheelhouse. I needed someone to help them learn to use the media and not be used by it." She looked at him. "Plus it would hardly be a smart move to bring the man I had slept with into the team."

His expression was still puzzled. "Okay, I understand that. What I don't understand is why you didn't have that conversation with me prior to having Hotch and JJ announcing it to the team?"

"Because I wasn't thinking, Derek. I've got a lot on my plate." She was sorry for the way she handled the situation. "You know, this job is a lot more complex than I thought it would be. It doesn't help that I'm an American either." She glared at him, angry that he was making her feel worse about the whole thing, he didn't know what it was like. She was in a new city, new country for Pete's sake. She was dealing with resentment for both her nationality and her gender and on top of everything she now was struggling with raging hormones. "It certainly doesn't help that after only a few months here I found out that I'm pregnant!"

His mouth opened, closed, and opened again. "Come again?" He finally managed to croak out.

"You heard me. I'm pregnant. With child. Knocked up. Up the duff. In the family way."

"How pregnant are you?" He asked, again interrupting her tirade.

She wasn't quite sure what he was asking so she cleared up any doubt. "You'll be a dad in March." She watched him swallow, try to speak, stop and swallow again.

Rubbing the bridge of his nose he asked, "When were you planning on telling me?" When she didn't answer immediately he followed with, "Or weren't you and JJ convinced you otherwise?"

She schooled her expression knowing that he would be watching it very carefully.

He nodded as she flinched just slightly. "You weren't going to tell me."

"I thought about not telling you." Emily admitted then watched as he disappeared from her screen. She knew that he hadn't disconnected because she could still hear noise. "Derek?"

"What do you want me to say to that, Em?" His voice floated over the speaker but she still could not see him.

"What do you want me to say, Derek?" She huffed. "Do you think this is easy? It's one part thrilling and three parts scary as hell. It's not like you crawled into my bed with this in mind. We're attracted to one another, we're sexually compatible, but we didn't hit the sheets with forever in mind. Hell you probably thought it was safe to sleep with me knowing that in a few short weeks I'd be 3700 miles away."

She heard the loud noise but didn't have a clue as to what he'd hit. "Derek."

"I can't talk to you right now, Emily." He growled gruffly before the screen went black.

She sat for a moment looking at the blank screen, stunned that he'd actually hung up on her. He seriously hung up on her.

She made her way to the kitchen where JJ and Henry were still ensconced.

"Oh sweetie." JJ rose to meet her as soon as she looked up and saw her coming eyes wide and silently streaming.

Emily allowed herself to be enfolded by JJ. "He's really mad, JJ." She let JJ walk her over to the table and sit her down. "He's probably never going to talk to me again." She sniffed, "Or he's probably calling his lawyer right now to find out his rights."

"Or he's probably trying to process the news you just told him." JJ interrupted. "You just dropped a huge bomb on him."

"He hung up on me." She sniffled.

JJ rubbed her shoulder consolingly. "Well, that wasn't very nice but maybe it was for the best."

Emily looked at her strangely, how could hanging up on her be for the best?

"Let him work through it. Right now he's probably in the basement beating the crap out of his bag." JJ sighed, sad that both of her friends were hurting. "It's best that he hung up and didn't say something he didn't really mean and couldn't take back."

"Do you think he'll call me back?" Emily asked in a small voice.

JJ smiled sadly and cautioned her friend. "It might not be today."

**Thank you for reading. Derek is finally in the know. I thought about having him fly to London but I liked the idea of this better, eventually they will get together but it's probably a bit out yet. Thank you so much to everyone that leaves me a review, I'm glad that you are enjoying my story and hope you continue to do so! **


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer: Not mine.**

**A/N: I only have three more chapters written out and I'm starting to panic… It's in my brain but sometimes the translation to paper isn't as seamless as it should be! And it doesn't help that I keep adding stuff as I go back to re-read and proof. Let me know if you think I'm getting in the weeds. **

**Chapter Six **

It was official. Aaron Hotchner's formerly elite team had officially gone to shit. He scrubbed a hand over his face and reflected on the day he'd just had. It started off with them passing a field of forget-me-not's in rural Colorado. That was the first sign that he had to count himself as one of the former elite. Field of damn ass flowers had him waxing poetic about the color of a certain loaned out agent's eyes. He could only hope she appreciated the arrangement that he sent to her office. He blew out a heavy breath and scanned the bar quickly; lighting on the reason he was in the hotel bar at midnight, he dropped into the empty seat beside Derek Morgan.

"Rough night?" He nodded at the beer resting in front of Morgan before placing an order for his own scotch.

Derek turned to his boss and cringed. "Hotch, man, I'm sorry about this evening." He had completely lost his cool and almost blown the entire investigation. His hand curled around the beer that he'd ordered but had still yet to drink.

Hotch nodded solemnly knowing that he tread lightly, something was bothering Derek. Until recently he managed not to let it interfere with his daily work. "It's okay. You think I don't want to take a shot at some of the scums we catch? I know better than anyone that what we do isn't always easy. I understand that it can take a personal toll."

Morgan pursed his lips almost wishing that Hotch would rant and rave about his stupidity rather than being understanding. "Yeah, well, wanting and doing are two different things."

Again Hotch nodded his agreement. "True, but sometimes shit happens." He flashed a rare smile at his employee's stunned expression. "You want to talk about what's really bothering you?" He took a sip of his scotch. "I know all about displaced anger, Derek."

"Emily's pregnant." He finally said the words out loud.

Doing a double take Hotch sat his scotch back down on the bar. "Huh. Well I guess that explains why she was so gung ho on having JJ over there." He shook his head at the knowledge. Emily pregnant; now that was something he actually wished he would have been able to see.

Morgan frowned at his boss' reaction. "I'd wondered if you already knew."

"How would I?" Hotch turned to look at the younger manager in confusion, his voice trailing off. "Oh." Apparently one member of his team knew that he was in close contact with JJ. He shook his head. "Uh, no, JJ didn't say anything." He took another sip of his drink and pondered the idea that he wasn't as subtle as he thought when it came to his feelings for JJ. Then he turned and looked at his friend as realization came in a flash. "Huh."

"You must be tired. That took you a full minute." Not glancing over at his boss he grinned.

"I've got a lot going on. Concern over the welfare of my team has been giving me grief." Hotch grinned back at Morgan. "Hopefully this news will help break Penelope out of her funk. She'll understand why JJ had to go over there and she'll be tickled that you've procreated." He chuckled, "I can hardly wait to see what kind of name she'll come up with for your offspring, Mini M&Em's?" Hotch shook his head in wonder. "I'm sure it will be creative." He raised his glass. "Congratulations."

"Thanks." Morgan dipped his head laughing. "Oh lord, I forgot all about Pen. She hears this from someone else she's likely to go into a tailspin." He groaned at the thought, knowing that the conversation he had to have with her needed to be sooner rather than later.

"I think talking to Penelope would be a very good thing." He swished his drink. "It could be beneficial to both of you. I don't think she's dealing with the Lynch thing very well."

Derek frowned over at Hotch at the realization of what the older man was asking. "Ah man, I don't want to talk to Mama about _that_." But he also knew that he should. Hotch was right Penelope wasn't dealing well. Especially since that douche Lynch was dating other women already.

Feeling for the other man Hotch replied. "She needs a friend, maybe a guys' perspective would help."

"You could do that." Morgan pointed out.

Hotch was quick to respond. "Not as well as you could. You're her main man, her Chocolate Thunder. You have a connection." And God knew that Hotch did not want to have this conversation with her.

Morgan was thoughtful for a minute. "Well I do have some gossip to share with her. When I tell her who has been kissing on JJ she'll definitely perk up."

"Who's been kissing on JJ?" Hotch demanded.

"Calm down, brother. I was referring to you." Morgan studied the older man closely. Fuck if misery didn't love company. "Does JJ know that you're in love with her?"

Coolly picking up his scotch Hotch turned to Morgan and asked, "Does Emily know that you're in love with her?"

"Touché."

"What are you going to do about it?" Hotch asked after they both had stared miserably at their drinks for a long time without touching them.

Morgan sighed. "I'm not even sure she wants me involved. She didn't even plan on telling me she was pregnant. JJ talked her into it." He glumly admitted.

Hotch looked over at the distressed man. "Obviously this wasn't planned. She probably wasn't sure what she was going to do. I'm sure she always intended on telling you. She probably just wasn't sure how."

"Sure, take her side." Morgan replied snidely. "What would you do if you were in my shoes?" He looked over at Hotch wanting to see his reaction.

"JJ and I have only just kissed."

"Use your imagination." He requested. "Keep it PG."

"You're not dealing with Dave here." Hotch laughed. "So, you want me to imagine JJ pregnant and over in London, what would I do?" He stared at Morgan for a minute. "I'd jump on the next plane and bring her ass back."

Derek raised a brow, imagining trying to pull that with either Emily or JJ.

Hotch saw the reaction and chuckled. "Yeah, that probably wouldn't work. But I'd make damn sure that she knew that I wanted to be involved and not just for the sake of the baby." He looked over at the younger man. "You wanted a relationship with Emily before you found out she was pregnant. Make sure that she knows that. Tell her, be honest with her. Let her decide the pace, but make sure she knows damn well where you stand."

Morgan sat in stunned silence for a minute. "That's actually pretty good advice." He grinned over at him. "Is that what you're doing with JJ?"

"Pretty much." He thought of the pretty blonde and imagined her getting the flowers he'd sent. There was no doubt that she'd misinterpret his intentions, he made sure of that.

JJ groaned when Emily announced that she got flowers again. Will had sent a dozen red long stemmed roses to the office on Monday. They were beautiful, sure, but she read it as kind of his staking his claim. Letting others know that she had someone back in the States. Now here they were again. Obviously she needed to have a more direct conversation with him. She heard the smattering of comments as Emily moved through the office and was looking up as she came through the door. "Holy shit." Her eyes lit up. They were beautiful, absolutely stunningly beautiful.

"Will's taste has improved." Emily teased.

Smile blinding, JJ reached for the card knowing immediately who they were from. "These aren't from Will," she stated, before pulling the card from the envelope.

"Really?" Her friend replied dryly as if it weren't obvious who the blossoms were from.

"We passed a field of these while on a case in Colorado and I suddenly missed you even more." JJ smiled at the card and held it to Emily for inspection.

"What are these?" Emily touched a fragile bloom.

"Forget-me-nots." JJ sighed, touched beyond words at the romantic gesture.

Emily rolled her eyes. "Well I have to give him props; it does have a certain romantic flair." She groaned as JJ reached for her phone and snapped a picture.

"He sent me forget-me-nots." She placed her hand on her racing heart.

"Because he doesn't want you to forget him, yeah, yeah, I got that." She took her pointer finger and imitated a gagging gesture but it was playful.

JJ just giggled, unwilling to allow Emily's mocking to annoy her. "You know, I'd just like to point out that the mean bitchy part of pregnancy isn't supposed to occur until the late third trimester when you're wondering if the baby is ever going to come."

Emily rolled her eyes. "I make trends I don't follow them."

JJ just continued to smile. "See, I told you they were on a case." Emily had been waiting for Derek to call her back and the longer he'd gone without doing so the more worried she became. "He's still working and processing it. He'll call before you know it." She squealed as her phone beeped to alert her of a new text.

Emily watched jealously as JJ literally glowed while reading it.

She giggled nauseatingly then looked up at Emily, "Hotch says congrats." JJ said as she finished typing her reply.

The smile dropped from her face and her eyes grew wide. "He knows?" Her face held a myriad of emotions, anger and hurt being the most prevalent.

Her look had JJ backing up and raising her hands. "Hey, I didn't tell him. I wouldn't."

"So he can talk to Hotch about it but he can't talk to me?" She growled, unsure why she was so disappointed.

Ever the peace keeper JJ said, "To be fair, I knew you were pregnant before Derek did."

"I don't want to be fair!" She snapped.

The loud statement had several heads turning and had JJ pulling Emily into her temporary office. "Okay, listen, I love you, but you're being unreasonable." All the while her hand was running up and down Emily's arm in a consoling manner. "You've had weeks to deal with it. Derek's only had a very brief time. And when you told him you kind of made it sound like you weren't interested whether he was involved or not." JJ winced at the last bit of her speech.

Emily had the grace to look contrite. "Not in so many words." At JJ's stare she conceded. "Fine, I handled it badly. I got nervous. Of course I want him to be involved."

"Emily, I understand that," she unclipped Emily's phone from her belt, "I really do. But," she placed her phone in her hand, "Derek didn't. Only you can fix that. Quit being so damn stubborn and reach out to him. Apologize. Tell him you're scared and that makes you stupid. He'll forgive you."

"I don't know when you got so smart." Emily mumbled.

JJ smiled just as her phone chimed again. "I've always been this smart." She opened her office door. "Now go, I've got to get my flirt on and I do it better when I can give it my undivided attention."

Emily was going to make a smart comment when her own phone came to life. "Oh my gosh, JJ, it's him." She looked over at her friend in a panic. "What do I do?"

"Answer the phone." JJ encouraged, watching as her friend did just that and strolled out of her office. Eyes lighting on the flowers on her desk she decided she didn't want to settle for a text message she wanted to hear Aaron Hotchner's deep, sexy voice.

**Thank you for reading, hope you enjoyed. Big thanks for all the folks that have left a review and/or have favorited or followed this story. I hope you're still with me!**


	7. Chapter 7

**Disclaimer: Not mine.**

**A/N: The couples talk and define their relationships but they are still separated by an ocean….**

**Chapter Seven**

"Hotchner."

She sighed just hearing his voice, providing even further evidence that she had it bad. "The flowers are gorgeous."

In his office in Quantico Aaron Hotchner grinned widely; a full on dimpled smile. "Well the inspiration for them certainly is so I'm glad they are living up to my expectations."

Her breath caught in her throat. "I had no idea that you could be so romantic."

He smiled. "There are still some things you don't know about me, Jennifer Jareau."

"Yet."

"What?"

She sighed, "You forgot to add the word _yet_. There are still some things I don't know about you, yet."

"The yet was definitely implied." He leaned back in his chair and confided. "You know, I miss you more than I thought possible which quite frankly scares the shit out of me."

"I miss you, too." She stared down at the hearts she was drawing on her blotter. "You know I'm probably going to have to find another job?" She'd been giving that a lot of thought lately as well.

"I told you I would hold your job, JJ." Hotch was quick to reply not sure why she would be thinking of finding another one.

Feeling bold because of the distance and emboldened by his gift and comments she commented, "I know. But I won't be able to work for you when I'm sleeping with you."

That had him sitting up in his chair. "Exactly how much longer are you going to be there?" Hotch asked hoarsely making her giggle.

"Too long." She closed her eyes and imagined that she was back in Virginia setting across from him. Not wanting to tease him she changed the subject, "So, tell me what's been going on. How's Jack?" She smiled as she listened to him fill her in on his son's school exploits and then move to talk about the team. Once he completed his news she spoke of Henry and what she was doing for Interpol.

"I'm really just here for Emily." She shared with him. The job held none of the allure that her position back in Quantico had and barely held any interest.

"Did you know it was Morgan?" Hotch suddenly asked, interested to get her take on the story.

"No. She didn't say anything before I came over, and then it just came out. But it makes sense; they've always had a little flirty thing. He was moodier about her departure more than anyone else." She paused for a moment, "has he told Pen yet?"

"No, he's waiting to talk to Prentiss again. I take it their initial conversation did not go well."

"That's an understatement." She asked him to hold on as one of the team knocked on her door effectively bringing their conversation to an end. "Hey, I'm sorry but I've got to go."

"Yeah, I figured." He'd heard the conversation on the other end of the line and was familiar enough with the drill. "We'll talk again soon."

"Hey Hotch?"

"Yeah?"

"I wasn't kidding about finding a replacement for me." She wasn't sure when she made the decision; maybe when he kissed her, but she knew there was no turning back from it.

The gentlemen in him gave her an escape route. "Don't you think this is something we should deal with when you're back here?"

The woman in her knew she had no intention of looking for a way out. "I think if we would have kissed when you picked me up from my house we would already be lovers. I know that's the direction I want it to go." She paused to let him absorb that. "You know, I will have my pick of assignments when I get back. Emily was right about one thing when I decided to come over here."

"What was that?" He asked, still trying to control his breathing after the image her last statement put in his head.

"She said it was time to do something for myself." She giggled lightly. "I'm granting myself the freedom to act on my feelings for you."

"The team is going to love me." He groaned, only imagining how they were going to deal with the decision to replace JJ. Her temporary duty assignment had not gone over so well.

"Aaron?" She asked, a little timidly now.

"Yeah?"

"If I've misread this situation or am being too aggressive I can back down."

He chuckled. "JJ we've been heading this direction since I said 'welcome to the BAU'."

"Have we?" She asked coyly.

"Yeah, we have," he responded with conviction. "So I'm going to find a replacement for you, because when you come back I'm not going to be your boss, I'm going to be your lover."

There was no hesitancy in his statement just solid conviction. "I'm counting the days."

"You called." Emily moved into her office and closed the door as she answered her phone. "I was just getting ready to call you. To apologize." She affirmed. "I'm really sorry, Derek."

"For what, Emily? Waiting so long to tell me? Entertaining the idea of not telling me? Or assuming this is something that I would have no interest in?" Derek asked, the questions rolling off his tongue, each one as important as the last.

Emily grimaced. "All of the above." She let out a heavy sigh. "I didn't mean to hurt you, Derek, I was trying to be honest and it came across abrasive."

"It did," he agreed before conceding with a sigh, "But I should have been a little more understanding. I'm having a hard time wrapping my brain around the fact you're pregnant and I'm going to be a dad."

She let out a little laugh, "If it helps, it gets easier with time."

"It would help if I could see you. I don't like that you're so far away." He admitted. "I didn't crawl into your bed thinking I could hit it and quit it, Em. I've been trying to find a way in it for a long time."

His admission made her smile. "Really?"

He laughed, unable to help it. She sounded so surprised by the fact. "Yeah, really. Do you think I would have been so hurt otherwise?"

"I honestly didn't think, Derek." She confessed. "I'll be honest with you; I am really excited about being pregnant _now_. But I didn't start out that way. At first I was petrified. It can be very overwhelming." She exhaled. "JJ managed to talk me off the ledge. Now I'm happy and excited. But I'm still a little nervous about everything going on. I've got a little bump and I want to wear the tightest clothing I have to advertise it. But then, my god, my hormones. JJ tells me that they should be settling soon and I'll have a period where I'll be normal again. And nice, apparently I have stretches where I'm not so nice."

He smiled as she rambled. "You, not nice?" Derek teased.

"Shocking, right?" She chortled.

It was Derek's turn to sigh. "You know that I'm going to be involved, right?"

Emily bit her lip as tears filled her eyes. "I had really hoped so."

"Is it okay for me to start telling people?" He asked tentatively.

"Other than Hotch you mean?" She asked dryly.

"Honestly, I thought maybe he had already known."

She thought about that for a minute before it clicked. "Through JJ?" She hadn't considered that he would have thought that.

"Yeah." He chuckled. "Which, by the way, Hotch is completely in to her. Let me apologize for mocking your source."

"You're forgiven." She replied as she laughed. "I'm glad, I really am. I don't know how we didn't see it before because they are perfect for each other. You should see the flowers he sent her."

He thought of the confidences that his boss shared with him only the night before. "I just hope he doesn't end up getting hurt. Penelope said Will is really hopeful this separation will bring the two of them back together."

"Well, not to challenge _your_ source, but that's just pure speculation. She's not getting back together with Will." She replied with full confidence.

"Oh, you think she's in to Hotch?" He couldn't help but pry.

Emily snorted. "No. I know she's really in to Hotch. You should have seen her face when she got the flowers. Her face lit up like a kids on Christmas morning."

"Interesting." He imagined that Emily would probably know a little better where JJ's mind was considering the blonde was currently living with her. But he didn't want to spend his valuable time talking about JJ and Hotch. "Hey, speaking of Pen, I was thinking about telling her about the baby. Are you okay with that?"

"How do you think Pen is going to deal with the idea of my having your baby?" Emily could only imagine and was grateful for the ocean that separated them; the idea of getting squeezed to death was not appealing.

"You know my relationship with Pen is flirtatious platonic."

"I'm pretty sure that's an oxymoron. But I get what you're trying to say. It's harmless."

"Exactly. But Baby Girl is my best friend and if she finds out another way…."

"She won't be happy." Emily finished for him.

"That's putting it mildly."

"I also want to let you know I told my mom." He sighed, "And my sisters." His left ear was still ringing from that conversation.

"Oh God," Emily interjected, as a thought just occurred to her. "I have to tell my mother."

"You haven't told your mother yet?" Derek asked, surprised. He assumed that she'd told her parents immediately.

"No." She replied shortly. That was a conversation she was not looking forward to.

The tone in her voice had him questioning. "Can I ask why not?"

"God." Emily groaned. "Because she'll ask me what I was thinking and I'll have to admit that I wasn't and from there it will just go downhill because she'll annoy me so much that I know I'll get smart just to piss her off and I'll end up bringing up how you bet me that you could give me a screaming orgasm braced against the wall in my kitchen. Then she'll give me a disappointed 'Oh Emily' and then I'll say don't worry mom it actually happened, then she'll pull out the Emily Marie Prentiss and probably give me a stern lecture about parenthood and being responsible and by the end of it we won't be speaking to one another."

Derek laughed. "Okay, you've played that scenario out, how about you just call her and tell her that she's going to be a grandma? Leave out the screaming orgasm."

"That's the best part of the story." Emily snickered. "You realize you can change the words but it still won't change her reaction. I'm not married, hell I'm not even in a relationship, and it is not going to be pretty." She dropped her head forward.

"We're in a relationship." He defended. "We can define it any way you want." He listened to her breathe for a minute. "How do you want to define our relationship Emily?"

"How did you define it to your mom?" She countered.

He went silent for a minute, fairly certain Emily would not appreciate the fact that he told his mother that he was going to marry her. "I just told her we were very close and explained that these days a lot of people didn't think marriage was necessarily important to having a baby."

"Yeah, how'd that go?" He forgot that she'd actually met his mother, and the fact that she was privy to the calls he fielded from the woman asking when her son was going to settle down and marry and give her grandbabies.

"She explained to me that a baby needed two parents." He responded wryly.

"She wasn't happy." She worried.

Morgan was quick to reassure her. "Oh no, baby, she was over the moon. She wasn't happy that you weren't with me. She doesn't know how we can be a happy, expectant couple when you're living in England."

Mama Morgan was pretty sharp. "Well, Derek, how'd she take the news that we weren't a couple?"

"You know, I may have implied that we were, in fact, a couple." He replied boldly.

"You lied to your mother!"

"No ma'am," Derek argued, "I simply expressed my wishes on the subject."

"Oh." She was ridiculously happy by that statement. He wanted to be a couple. With her.

"Yeah, oh." He groaned as Hotch stuck his head in his office and announced they had yet another case and he was needed in the war room. "I got to go. You think about what I just said Emily Marie Prentiss. I want a relationship with you. I want to be in this baby's life. And I know that we only had one brief weekend, but I made you happy on more than just your kitchen wall. Make sure you factor all of that in." He stood to leave the office.

"Derek?" Her voice was soft. "Where ever you go, make sure you take good care of yourself. I already know what I want."

He came to an abrupt halt. "Is that right? What is it that you want, Emily?"

"You. I want you." She admitted easily, surprised at how much better she felt after the confession.

His smile exploded. "Good, now go tell your mama we're having a baby."

**Thank you for reading. Thank you for all the encouraging comments and the follows – I really appreciate them.**


	8. Chapter 8

**Disclaimer: Not Mine.**

**A/N – This is mainly a Penelope chapter. This is where I worry I get in the weeds. While the story is mainly supposed to be JJ/Emily friendship and JJ/Hotch – Emily/Derek I keep finding that in order to tell _that_ story the other characters tend to jump in now and again. I hope you enjoy.**

**Chapter Eight **

"Oh my stars! Are you kidding me, Derek Morgan?" They had just returned back from their latest case and Derek had hunted Penelope out to give her the news knowing the longer he put it off the more probable she would hear it from another source and end up pissed at him.

"I would not kid you about something like this Baby Girl." He smiled at her stunned expression.

"Emily Prentiss is pregnant and you Derek Morgan are the baby daddy?" She repeated.

Derek nodded. "That is correct. Emily is pregnant and I'm the father."

"How did that happen?" Garcia wanted to know.

"The usual way." He replied saucily.

"Oh you." Standing up she went over and gave her friend a hug. "I'm so happy for you." She pulled back to look at him. "We are happy, right?"

"Oh Baby Girl, you have no idea how happy we are." Morgan moved to an empty chair and dropped into it. "We still have some stuff to work out."

"Uh, I guess so. Your baby mama is overseas. Derek, Emily can't have the baby in England." She stated emphatically. "How will we visit the little tyke?"

Derek sighed in agreement, not surprised that Penelope zeroed in on his biggest hurdle. "That's one of the things we need to work out."

Not wanting to push the issue Garcia moved on to a new topic. "Who else knows?" She wanted to know.

"Well, my mom and sisters, JJ obviously, Emily just told her parents." He smiled as he recalled the conversation they had regarding her telling her parents and their surprising reaction. Rather than the lecture she had expected her mother had been elated and promptly burst into tears. "Oh, and Hotch."

Garcia frowned at the last name. "Wait a minute, Hotch knows?" She glared at Morgan. "Why did Hotch know before me?"

Leave it to Penelope to take affront at that. Morgan shook his head. "I did something stupid and he came to talk to me and it just came out." He explained.

She looked at him for a long minute before acceptance finally kicked in. "Okay, I guess that makes sense. Maybe." She stared at him for another moment. "What about Reid and Rossi?" She would not be happy to be the last one told.

Luckily Derek knew a little of how her mind worked. "I haven't said anything yet."

"This is just so huge." Garcia gushed. "I guess that's why Emily wanted JJ over at Interpol with her?" That request at least made sense to her now. As did her Chocolate Adonis' despondency a few weeks ago; she may have her own issues but she hadn't been blind to his. She just didn't have the ability to reach out to him.

"Yeah, she and Jay are pretty close." He shook his head, "I'm really glad she's there for Emily."

"Me too," Pen conceded. "But I really miss her and my little peanut." Her face expressed her sadness.

Morgan squeezed her shoulder. "This was a good thing for JJ, too, Pen. She really needed to get away from here."

Penelope looked at him curiously. "Why, what do you mean? Everything is going to work out with her and Will. They just hit a rough patch. JJ needed some time away to put things back into perspective."

"She wasn't happy, Pen." He shrugged. "It was a really hard decision for her not to marry Will." He was sorry now that he was so wrapped up in his own issues that he didn't reach out to the blonde that sat across from him.

"Right, I know it was. Like I said, one of the reasons she went to Interpol was so she could work some stuff out. I don't have any doubt they will reconcile when JJ returns." The look on Derek's face indicated that he disagreed with her assessment.

He watched her for a minute. "Baby Girl, when are you going to tell me what happened with Lynch?"

"Nothing to tell Sweet Cheeks, that is a story best left alone. Besides, I don't want to talk about Kevin Lynch, why are we talking about Kevin?" She asked curiously.

He pulled her over to her seat and made her sit down and knelt in front of her. "Because I think your desire to see JJ and Will reconcile is more about you and Lynch than it is them."

"No it's not," she vehemently denied. When Morgan didn't respond other than to raise a brow at her she conceded. "I just want my family happy. My little Gumdrop isn't happy. Don't you think they'll get back together?" She pouted.

"I'm not going to speculate about JJ and Will, Pen." He wouldn't meet her eyes.

Penelope's eyes grew wide. "Oh my god, you know something!" She waited until he looked at her. "You honestly don't think they're going to get back together because you know something you're not telling me."

Morgan shook his head. "Pen, JJ asked Will to find another place to live while she was gone, that says over to me, not I need space."

Penelope looked confused for a moment. "Why do you know this and I didn't?" Her face reflected her hurt.

"Because every time you talk to JJ you refuse to listen to what she's telling you. Or you listen then interpret it however you want it." He replied honestly.

"That's not true." She frowned.

Morgan pulled the analyst into a hug. "Baby Girl, you know I love you, but you haven't been yourself. Even Hotch is aware of it. He asked me to talk to you."

The idea that their esteemed leader specifically asked Derek to speak to her knocked her for a loop. "Jinkies." She sat down heavily in her chair pulled her troll into her hands and began to fuss with it. Not looking up she sighed and blurted out. "Kevin was going to propose, I wasn't ready."

"What is it with you BAU girls?" Morgan asked seriously. They were all a touch commitment shy.

Garcia sighed again wishing she had an answer. "We might struggle with a few issues." She looked up at Morgan sheepishly. "I was embarrassed, I just reacted badly." She winced at the memory. "Then he started dating again so freaking quickly and it made me mad." She growled. "I mean, really, I didn't say I never wanted to get married, I said I wasn't ready right now." Tears pricked at her eyes. "Men are so stupid."

Morgan chuckled. "When it comes to women we have a tendency to be." He reached across the space that separated them and grabbed one of her hands. "Why didn't you tell anyone?"

Garcia shrugged. "Emily was leaving, JJ was dealing with Will, and you had something going on." She squeezed his hand. "It's not like I could talk to Rossi, Reid or Hotch about it either."

"Pen, you could have talked to any of us." He scolded. "I don't know if it makes me angry or sad that you didn't think you could."

"It just seemed like we were all falling apart," she admitted, "And I didn't want to talk about it." Her eyes grew wide. "That's what you meant about listening. JJ tried to talk to me and I just wanted things to go back to normal so I wasn't listening to what she was saying."

"There's my smart girl." Derek winked at the analyst. "What about Lynch? Have you tried talking to him?" He watched as she nodded sadly. "Do you want me to talk to him?"

Garcia looked completely stunned by the mere suggestion. "No!"

"Sweetie," Derek argued, "I can tell you from very recent firsthand experience that talking helps. He doesn't know what's going on in that beautiful head of yours if you're not talking to him."

She smiled over at him, her heart filled with happiness. "When did you get so wise?"

The smile erupted over his face. "Well, I am a dad now."

Garcia giggled. "Oh, you."

~~~CM~~~CM~~~CM

After her conversation with Derek she couldn't stop thinking. Maybe she should have tried harder, maybe she could have explained better what was going on in her head. And she definitely should have fought harder when he walked away from her.

"Penelope?" Kevin Lynch was walking down the hallway to his apartment when he stopped short. Penelope Garcia was the last person that he expected to be waiting for him outside his door.

"Do you think maybe we could talk?" The usually flamboyant technical analyst requested somewhat shyly.

"Talk?" He managed to squeak out.

She nodded, finding some confidence deep within her. "Yeah, talk; there are some things that I need to say that I think you need to hear."

"O-kay." He stood in front of her awkwardly. "I mean, yeah, sure." Even though she'd broken his heart he could never imagine a day when he wouldn't want to hear whatever it was that Penelope Garcia had to say. He looked over to see her frowning at him.

"Are you going to open your door or did you want to talk in the hallway?" Penelope asked, worried that she was close to losing her newly found nerve.

He blinked owlishly. "What?" He looked around and realized that he was still standing outside his door. "Oh," he shook his head sheepishly, "Sorry, I got distracted." He pulled his keys from his pocket and quickly unlocked the door. "Come in, please." He held the door and waited for her to enter.

Once inside his apartment her nerves really took flight, she wondered how she allowed things to go so wrong, so quickly and was scared she was going to let it happen again. Screwing up her last resources of courage she blurted. "When I said I didn't want to marry you I didn't mean ever. You took me by surprise, Kevin, and that scared me and I freaked out."

Kevin's brow furrowed, "I don't understand."

Penelope's expression softened as he stood adorably confused in front of her. "I miss you." She confessed. "I handled your badly handled proposal," she looked up at him and winced, "Bad." She shrugged.

"I was pretty nervous." Kevin conceded. "I really bungled it."

"So did I." Penelope sighed deeply. "And I keep screwing up."

"That's not possible." Kevin argued.

"It is." She walked over to the couch and flopped down on it. "Derek told me that I need to talk to you and actually listen." She looked up at Kevin again. "I got relationship advice from Derek Morgan." She groaned.

Kevin gave a lopsided grin. "Well, it sounds like pretty decent advice."

Garcia shrugged. "I know!"

"I'm not actually dating you know, I know you think that I am because I've been places with other women, but they weren't dates per se, they were just," he stopped and looked at her. "They were just outings with friends. I wasn't ready to date. I don't want to date anyone but you."

She managed to choke out a strangled, "Kev" before he continued.

"I should have told you that. But I was too stupid and hurt to." He pushed his glasses up and took several steps closer to the woman on his couch.

Penelope's eyes filled with tears. "I've been alienating my friends because I'm not handling our breakup well." She confessed.

"Maybe if we fixed what went wrong with us you could fix your other problems?" He suggested as he knelt in front of her. "I don't like being without you Penny."

It was the right thing to say as the blonde analyst launched herself at him.

Later as they lay tangled on the floor with one another she caught him up on everything that was going on.

"Derek and Emily?" Kevin shook his head. "I have to admit, I'm relieved. I always expected that he had an infatuation with you."

"You silly goose." Penelope reprimanded, "I told you there was nothing between us."

"Well, I know how wonderful you are so I just assumed everyone would love you like I do." He grinned over at her. "We're good, right. We're going to be okay."

"Oh Sweet Cheeks, you bet your bottom we are." She leaned in and placed a soft kiss against his lips. "Just in time too, I'm going to need help getting Emily and JJ back where they belong."

Kevin shook his head. "Penny, you know that you shouldn't interfere in your friend's lives."

"Oh pish posh, it's practically expected of me."

**Thank you for reading. And thank you to all those of you that leave me comments, I truly appreciate them. They inspire me to keep at this. I hope you're still enjoying the ride. **


	9. Chapter 9

**Disclaimer: Not Mine**

**A/N – Now everyone is going to know as Garcia opens her mouth and inserts her foot. :)**

**Chapter Nine**

Hotch had just finished re-reading an email from JJ when Garcia barged into his office. "What is this?" She yelled as she slammed a file folder on to his desk.

Luckily for Garcia he was in a good mood. He raised a brow and opened the file. Crap. He forgot that Garcia had a tendency to come across stuff that she had no business seeing. He looked up at his technical analyst and leveled her with a stare. "How exactly did this come across your desk, Penelope?"

Not even bothering to appear guilty she loudly announced what the folder held. "This is a requisition request, sir!"

Hotch stared up at her and calmly replied. "I'm well aware of that, Garcia."

"More specifically this is a requisition request to replace Jennifer Jareau." Finding it set her carefully constructed, already in motion, plans haywire.

"You're replacing JJ?" Hearing the raised voice, Rossi meandered from his office to see what the hubbub was.

"You promised JJ that her job would be waiting for her when she returned!" Penelope shouted, not giving Hotch an opportunity to speak.

"I am well aware what my agreement with JJ was." The tone of his voice would have alerted anyone _other_ than Penelope Garcia to tread lightly.

Charging full steam ahead she exploded. "So this is how you treat eight years of loyalty? This is unforgivable! I have to tell you, sir, I never expected this of you."

"Now Penny…" Rossi tried to intervene, sure that there was something more to it that neither of them were aware of.

Penelope spun on him. "Don't you dare stick up for him!" She turned back to Hotch. "Well, what do you have to say for yourself?"

"I don't have anything to say for myself." Hotch responded coolly. "I do not need to justify my actions with you Garcia."

Still hoping to defuse the situation Rossi began again. "Aaron..."

"But, but, but you promised." Garcia wailed.

Angry that Penelope would jump to the conclusion that he would so easily misplace JJ had him responding sharply. "Any agreement that I made was with Agent Jareau, any changes to that agreement would have been fully discussed with Agent Jareau."

"You've spoken to JJ?" The pronouncement took the wind out of Penelope's sails. "Why would you replace her?" Her eyes got wide. "Oh my stars. She's not coming back is she?" She sunk in the chair in front of Hotch's desk. "She's going to stay there with Emily and I'll never get to see my little godson or the Chocolate Prince."

"Chocolate Prince?" Rossi questioned, not having heard that nickname before.

"Derek's baby." Garcia mumbled, her mind racing at the implications that this would present. How could she fix this?

"JJ is having Derek's baby?" Rossi asked incredulously, his eyes pinning Hotch looking for an answer.

At that Garcia looked up, "What? No. Emily is having Derek's baby."

"Did I just hear you say Emily's pregnant?" Reid stepped in through the open office door. "Are you sure? Emily Prentiss?"

"Emily and Derek are having a baby?" Rossi looked at Garcia then back over to Hotch for confirmation not sure that he had heard correctly. "Together?"

Having followed Reid up the stairs anxious to see what was going on in Hotch's office Derek came in on that last comment. "Oh Baby Girl."

Guilty eyes flashed over to the man that just walked in the office. "It just came out."

"Really?" Derek stared at her. "Just like that?"

Garcia winced. "Well to be fair, Hotch had me all flustered with a request to replace JJ." She glared at the man in question.

"Wait, you're replacing JJ?" Reid asked. "I thought you told her you'd hold her job?"

"See!"

"What the hell is going on around here?" Rossi hollered.

"An excellent question David, one that I would like an answer to myself." Erin Strauss declared entering the BAU Unit Chief's office and fixing Hotch with a glare of her own.

Hotch was just about to respond when his phone began to ring. "I would appreciate it if you could all remove yourself from my office. We're here to do a job people, not discuss people's private lives." He gave them his patented glare and watched as they unhappily began to file out of his office.

"This isn't over yet." Rossi grumbled as he watched the younger man bark into his phone.

"Close the door please." Hotch instructed as Reid, the last one to leave, looked back at him in genuine confusion. He was probably going to have to explain what was going on with JJ but he'd be damned if he was going to discuss what was going on with Derek and Emily. He sighed heavily as he dropped his head.

"Can you talk?"

The sweetly asked question had his mood altering immediately. "For you? Absolutely. I just needed to clear my office." He blew out a frustrated breath. "Garcia found the request for your replacement. In typical Garcia fashion she charged into my office and began to raise a ruckus which brought the rest of the team in." He sighed heavily. "I have a short reprieve; you can help me decide what I'm going to tell them."

"Do me a favor and remind Garcia that we had a conversation about me knowing what was best for me." Her voice had an edge to it that Hotch was just picking up on.

"JJ, is everything okay?"

She was quiet for so long that Hotch started to get worried. "She convinced Will to come over and fight for me."

"She did what!" His brain had stopped functioning. His romance was going to be over before it ever really began. He started mourning the loss of her. Already dreading the answer he couldn't help but ask. "Oh. Well. So should I just tear up that requisition request?" And go back to my sad existence.

"I thought we agreed that we can't have a relationship if I'm working for you, or is this your way of telling me you're no longer interested?" JJ snapped.

And just like that he was able to breathe again. "Of course I'm still interested." He was quick to reply. "I'm trying to be noble. If you're having second thoughts about…"

Her sigh was audible. "I'm not, Aaron. Not at all."

The use of his name brought a smile to his face. Again he regretted that she was so far away from him, but in a way he was also glad. It gave him the opportunity to be bolder than he would have had she been here with him. "Thank God. I was almost in full blown panic mode. I didn't like the idea that we were going to be over before we actually really begun. I was mentally checking into the next school holiday and wondering how Jack would feel about visiting London."

"You were thinking of flying over here to see me?" The tension in her voice had completely disappeared at his admission.

"Both United and American Airlines have nonstop flights out of IAD; it would cost me about two grand. Sure I'd have to borrow from Jack's college fund but he's a smart kid, he can probably get a scholarship." He chuckled. "I may have considered the idea before today."

"You are not dipping into your son's college fund. As much as I want to see you, that is not an option."

He had known that would be her response. "I also have an extremely wealthy friend. I bet he'd be willing to part with the cash. I'll just tell him it's needed for getting me laid. He would support that."

Knowing that it was Rossi he was referring to she agreed. He would definitely support that cause. "You're pretty sure of yourself." She said laughingly.

"Am I wrong?" Hotch asked softly.

"No you are not." JJ sighed, then added softly, "I'm really glad I called you."

"I'm really glad you did too." Hotch replied then brought the subject back to the original topic. "What are you going to do about Will, JJ?"

"Aaron?"

The hesitation had him bracing for another bombshell. "Yeah?"

"I told him that I loved him, but I was not in love with him and I couldn't see that happening because I had feelings for someone else."

He blew out a breath wishing again that he could be there for her. "How did that go over?"

"He knew." JJ's voice cracked. "In fact, he knew it was you that I was talking about. He said that he always suspected that I was half in love with you anyway and that if it hadn't been for Henry you and I would have gotten together long before now."

Hotch was quiet for a second before noting. "Jeez, maybe Will should become a profiler."

"Aaron." Her tone held a gentle reproof.

He could visualize her nibbling away at her bottom lip in worry. "He's not wrong, JJ. We've always had a closeness and with that an attraction, and while I'm incredibly sorry that Will is hurting I'm also incredibly glad that you are no longer with him. I know that makes me a selfish ass, but you not being with him leaves the door open for me, and I've been waiting for that opening for a long time."

"Why did you have to wait until I flew to England to decide to declare it?" JJ huffed, extremely frustrated by the distance between them.

"I was just waiting for you to be ready."

"Well consider the wait over."

~~~CM~~~CM~~~CM

"Who the hell is he on the phone with?" David Rossi growled as he noticed that the phone was still pressed to his friend's ear.

"Why are you so worried about it?" Erin Strauss watched as her lover stalked back in his office. "I'm sure it most likely has to do with a consult. I can't imagine Aaron being on a personal call for any length of time."

"Oh it's personal." Rossi argued. "He was smiling." He looked over at Strauss. "I'd bet my left nut he's on the line with a woman. He looked positively giddy."

"That's charming, David." She shook her head. "Perhaps he's on the line with Jennifer Jareau. Maybe _that's_ the reason she is pursuing another opportunity." She frowned slightly. "She's a bright girl I've never understood why she aligned herself to Aaron in the first place." She resumed the task that she had been working on when he arrived in her office.

"JJ and Hotch?" Rossi pondered that for a minute. "You might be on to something there, Toots."

The pen stopped writing and she glared up at him. "Can you not refer to me in cutesy terms here in the office, please?"

"Sure thing, babe." He had turned back to the door so he missed her glare. "JJ and Hotch. Hmmm. I don't know; I'm not sure I can see it." He turned back around to face Erin, his face all scrunched up considering the possibility.

"What's to see?" She scoffed. "They are both dedicated professionals, both single parents of boys, they are both very attractive…"

"You think Aaron is attractive?" Rossi interrupted.

Erin sighed. "Yes David, I think Aaron is attractive. Would you prefer I lied?" She had a talent for looking down at him even while she was sitting at her desk and he was standing.

"No, no." He waved his hand. "I'm just surprised; it's no secret that you're not his biggest fan."

"We butt heads; he has a different style than I do. However, I sincerely appreciate everything he has done for the BAU." She paused and placed her pen down and removed her eye glasses giving Rossi her full attention. "I don't have anything against the man, honestly." At his incredulous look she conceded. "Okay, maybe a few years ago." She allowed. "But the fact is he's very good at his job and," She smiled widely, "He is very good looking."

"He's kind of uptight." Rossi mumbled, irritated by her admission.

Erin shrugged. "You say uptight, I say focused." She laughed at the fierce expression on his face. "What bothers you most, David, the fact that I find Aaron attractive, or the possibility that I could envision a romance that you didn't foresee?" She watched as he frowned.

"Did you ever consider, you know?"

Erin rolled her eyes. "God no, just because I find a man attractive I don't imagine myself in bed with them. Lord if that were the case you should worry more about Derek Morgan than Aaron Hotchner. Heavens, even Agent Reid looks good enough to eat when he's not sporting that ridiculous long hair. Honestly, what is wrong with today's youth? Long hair." She broke off to find him grinning at her. "Wipe that ridiculous smirk off your face."

"I can't help it. You just admitted to fantasizing about the entire BAU."

"I did no such thing." She calmly picked up her glasses and placed them back on before grabbing her pen and resuming her earlier posture. "You keep me far too busy to wonder about other men."

"I don't need you to appease my vanity." He grumbled.

"Sweetheart, I wouldn't dream of trying to pacify you. If anything I'm just letting you know that I'm a woman that believes in keeping my options open. You start to slip and I might need to look at finding myself a younger lover. I do have such lovely options." She winked at him when his mouth fell open.

"I think I'll go check and see if Aaron is off his phone." He scowled at her as he left her office.

**Thank you for reading and as always thank you so much for the reviews and follows. They really do mean a lot and I appreciate every one! **


	10. Chapter 10

**Disclaimer: Not mine.**

**A/N: I'm finally working towards getting my couples back together. Woo Hoo! I went back and forth on how I would accomplish that and honestly the only thing that felt right to me was bringing the girls back home.**

**It may be that the satisfaction I need depends on my going away, so that when I've gone and come back, I'll find it at home. ~Jalal ad-Din Rumi (Persian poet)**

**Chapter Ten**

Emily was waiting for JJ when she arrived at the office. When Will showed up unexpectedly she graciously vacated the apartment giving her friend the space that she knew that she would need. However, she would be lying if she said it was easy and that the suspense wasn't killing her.

"I hope that's not coffee." JJ said pointedly looking at the mug in Emily's hand as she walked into the office.

Emily grinned at her pregnancy coach. "It is, but it's for you." She held the mug out to her. "So, what's new?"

JJ glared at her even as she accepted her offering. "Will is sightseeing with Henry. We had a very long, very necessary, overdue talk. So he is aware that I have feelings for Hotch and understands that while I love him and I love Henry the two of us being together as a couple just for our sons sake is not a good idea. He is disappointed but wasn't completely surprised. We are going to figure out a custody agreement when I get back to town."

"That's very mature of you."

JJ sank into her office chair. "God, it was awful. It'd be a different story if he weren't such a great guy."

Emily nodded in agreement. "What I don't get is what prompted him to fly over here and try to woo you back?"

"Oh, I have Garcia to thank for that." She sighed heavily. "She told him that he owed it to all of us to try to work things out and he thought that since she was my friend maybe I confided that I'd had a change of heart since I've been over here." JJ rolled her eyes. "She also found out that Hotch put in a requisition to replace me and stormed into his office demanding to know what was going on."

Emily, picturing the event couldn't stop the bubble of laughter that came bursting out. "Oh wow, I bet Hotch was pissed to have her challenging him."

"She also inadvertently told the entire office that you were pregnant and Derek was the father."

"Oh, alright then." Emily nodded. "That explains the weird email from Spence and the snarky one from Rossi." She glanced over at her friend. "I guess that means you've spoken to Hotch recently?"

"I called him after Will went to bed. I can't say that I really like the six hour time difference but it does come in hand sometime."

"How'd Hotch take the news that Will had come over?"

JJ smiled. "He was surprised and then a little nervous but once I reassured him that I hadn't changed my mind about the two of us he was okay. He admitted to me that he's been thinking of ways to get himself over here."

"Rossi would probably fly him over here just to get him laid."

JJ bust out laughing. "He said the exact same thing."

"You know," Emily sighed, "I've been doing some thinking myself."

JJ sat back and studied her at the seriousness of her tone.

She looked down and studied her hands. "I accepted this position because I was desperate for a change. The BAU didn't feel like home to me any longer and I wanted to make a move."

JJ nodded, having heard the story when Emily announced her leaving. "Okay."

Emily let out a big sigh and dropped her head. "I think I made the wrong move, JJ." She looked around the office. "I'm doing almost the same thing that I was in Quantico only I've managed to move thousands of miles away from the people that matter the most to me." She folded her hands. "I talked to Clyde this morning." She paused dramatically. "I explained to him that I would be better working at the office in Washington DC. I suggested that Tom Quinn replace me here."

JJ just stared at her, too flabbergasted to say anything.

"He was expecting the request as he had already received an informal request from the Ambassador."

JJ's eye's widened. "Your mom called him?" She knew that Emily hated when her mother interfered in her business.

Emily just shrugged, for once in her life not minding her mother's intrusion. "Unofficially."

JJ grinned widely, realizing exactly where this conversation was headed. "Well don't keep me guessing. How quickly do we leave?"

Emily relaxed a bit, JJ herself appeared happy, not the least bit upset by the news. "I think we could be back in northern Virginia by the end of next week." She picked at her nails. "Ten days. You don't hate me for having you uproot your life only to turn around and whisk you back do you?"

Rather than answer her JJ hurriedly ask. "Have you told Derek, yet?"

"I mentioned that I was thinking about it but no, he doesn't know that I spoke to Clyde this morning." Emily looked at her questioningly. "Why?"

"Don't say anything yet. I want to surprise him." She looked positively gleeful.

Emily raised a brow. "What happens if he has the same idea and he actually does come over here as you're waiting for him back in Virginia?"

"Not going to happen." JJ responded confidently. "I'm going to have a long talk with my pal Garcia tonight." She grinned, "You know if we plan this right we can probably travel home shortly after Will. How do you feel about selling your furniture?" She was already planning it in her head.

Emily was embarrassed as she confided. "Most of my furniture is rented, the flat was only temporary." She shook her head. "My god, even when I came here I knew in my brain it was only temporary. My own furniture is in storage back home."

JJ didn't judge her or comment on her confession. She knew all too well what it meant to be confused and make the wrong choice. They were both about to get a second chance. "There is no time for regret, Emily. We have a lot to do." She was smiling as she pulled out a pad of paper and started to make notes.

JJ's enthusiasm was catching. "I'm going to get to experience my pregnancy with Derek." Emily grinned at the realization. "We're going to be able to go to Lamaze and he can rub my feet when they get swollen."

"And he will be there when you go through the incredibly horny phase." She winked at Emily. "That takes a load off my mind. I'm willing to do a lot for you, Em, but I'm not sure I can be _that_ good of a friend."

Emily giggled. "That's okay, I much prefer men, especially my tall, dark, and handsome baby daddy." She paused and looked to JJ with apprehension. "What if he is turned off by me looking like this?" She rubbed a hand over her still barely swollen abdomen.

JJ rolled her eyes. "I hate to bust your bubble but this is some kind of weird machismo thing for them." She leaned over and rubbed Emily's belly. "It's like a full time announcement saying 'I hit that' for all other men to see. They really like it." She grinned. "He is not going to be turned off. In fact you'll probably be the one that gets tired of him."

"Like that's going to happen." Emily scoffed. "You know, I was a little scared to have this conversation with you. I wasn't sure how you'd react."

"Are you kidding me? You're not the only one with someone tall, dark and handsome waiting for you back home." That steamy goodbye kiss had sustained her long enough, she was ready for the next step.

Emily grinned at the besotted expression that her friend wore. "You really do have it bad." She noted.

"I do." JJ glanced down at her watch and did a quick calculation. "Well, I guess I better call Garcie."

Emily frowned as she noted the time and did a quick calculation. "Jay, you know it's like 3 a.m. on the east coast?"

JJ grinned up at her. "Yep."

"Okay then." She shook her head and stood to leave the office, she was not going to stick her nose in that one. "I guess I'll go start making some phone calls of my own."

~~~CM~~~CM~~~

The incessant ringing of the phone finally penetrated Penelope Garcia's sleep filled brain. She moved just about the time she heard Kevin pick up the phone.

"Hello." He grumbled, followed shortly by, "JJ? Do you know what time it is?" Garcia's eyes pooped open and she was reaching for the phone before he could say anything else. "Peaches! Oh my gosh, Peaches. What's wrong, is it Henry? Will? You're okay?"

"Penelope." JJ said, "Did we, or did we not, have a conversation about you trying to rule my life?"

"I tried to call you all day yesterday. I must have sent you a hundred emails."

"Oh, well maybe I would have picked up had I not been busy dealing with Will. You know my ex who suddenly, on the advice of my bestie, decided to fly to London in an attempt to rekindle our romance. Even though before I left for London I had a long talk with him and told him it would be best if we made a clean break of it while I was gone. I asked him to find other living arrangements, Pen. I wasn't interested in rekindling anything."

"Oh."

"Did I interfere in your relationship with Kevin when you didn't want to discuss it?"

"But Peaches…"

JJ continued to rant. "No, I didn't because I know that when you are talking about something that affects you personally sometimes you can't talk about it, sometimes you don't want to talk about it, or have to explain it to another person. I love you, Pen, but you really overstepped your boundaries. You should never have encouraged Will to come over here to fight for me."

"But…" Penelope sputtered still trying to get a word in edge wise. Something she was not familiar with at all.

"But nothing. Listen, I'm glad that you and Kevin were able to work out your differences but that's not going to happen with Will and me."

"But he loves you so much." She argued.

JJ took a deep breath. "And I love him, as Henry's father I will always love him. But I'm not in love with him. I don't think I ever was. I have feelings for someone else Pen."

"You've met someone new?" An incredulous Penelope asked.

"Not exactly." JJ responded evasively.

"Okay, what is going on? First you fly over to London with absolutely no warning, then I find out Emily is pregnant, then I get a requisition for your replacement." Garcia growled, feeling more than a little antsy that she was not in control of this conversation and she was becoming the last to know everything concerning her friends. Another thing she was not happy about.

"Technically you didn't get that Pen. You were snooping."

"I may have a program set up to inform me of anything that comes through for any member of the team." She grumbled. "If I would have done this before you would have never had to leave us the first time." She was of course referring to the time when JJ was transferred to the State Department.

"Well if you would have taken an opportunity to read the request for my replacement before storming Hotch's office you would have known that I was the one that requested to be released."

"I don't think I…" Pen started only to challenge, "Hey how do you know that I questioned Hotch about the replacement?" Before JJ had a chance to respond Pen shouted. "Oh my god! That's what you meant by not exactly. You're in a relationship with Hotch!"

"Not yet, but I will be." JJ confidently replied. "Which is why I can no longer work for him."

"That's just…, how can you?" Flustered she sighed. "Damn. Poor Will."

"Pen, poor Will was doing better until you decided to intervene." JJ not too kindly reminded her.

"Ugh." Penelope hit the palm of her hand against her head. "Does he know about Hotch?" Then another thought occurred to her. "Does Hotch know about Hotch?"

The question was absurd, trust Pen to come up with it. JJ giggled. "Yes, Will knows; so does Hotch."

"How? When?" She thought back on the interaction between the two of them. "You've kind of always had a thing for him, haven't you? I remember how disgusted you were when Haley divorced him."

Trust Pen to remember that! "Yeah, to be honest, I have. But Pen, I promise you, I never did anything while he was with Haley or I was with Will. We haven't really done anything now. Just a couple really incredible kisses and we've been talking a lot, and sending email and texting. This relationship has serious potential, Pen."

"Wow."

"If I've managed to render you speechless you must be surprised." In fact Penelope's silence had JJ worried. "Hotch is a really good guy Pen."

"Oh Peaches, I know, he's, like, the best. I just can't believe that I didn't see this." She had moved from the bed into the living room and was pacing furiously. "I can't believe that I convinced Will to go over there." She winced. "Jinkies, I'm so sorry."

"Well, to be honest I didn't see it happening either. One minute I was ready to board my flight and the next minute he was giving me something to remember him by."

Penelope snorted. "Please tell me he didn't actually say that."

"Shut up."

"Oh my stars, he did! How adorably corny."

"I'll have you know when a man can kiss like Aaron Hotchner can kiss he's allowed to be a little corny, although I didn't find it corny at all." JJ muttered in Hotch's defense.

"Well obviously because he kissed your brains out."

"Pen, I have to tell you something and I need your word that you'll keep my secret."

"You're not pregnant are you?"

"Maybe calling in the middle of the night wasn't the smartest idea." JJ sighed. "Pen, we've only kissed, I'm not pregnant."

"Right. Sorry, I know that, I just got swept up in everything."

"I need you to promise me that you won't let Aaron know that we've talked. Or anyone else for that matter."

She crinkled her nose in confusion. "Okay Peaches, but can I ask why?"

"Because we're coming home and I want to surprise him."

She couldn't believe what she'd just heard. "You're coming home!" She screeched. "When?!" There was no way she was going back to sleep now.

"Well, we've got some stuff to clear up it will probably be a week, maybe two." It seemed ridiculously far away now that she knew it was going to happen.

Something in what JJ said caught her attention. "Wait, are you talking you and Henry or you two and Emily?"

JJ smiled. "All of us, we're all coming home."

"Oh my goodness, Derek is going to be so extremely happy."

"Pen you _just_ promised me to keep it a secret." JJ scolded.

"You've got to be frekking kidding me. How am I going to keep a secret of that magnitude?" Did she forget who she was talking to?

"I don't know, but you're going to." JJ cautioned. "You're also going to make sure neither of them decides to get inventive and come for a visit as well." She was finding out that Aaron Hotchner was a man full of delightful little surprises so the thought of him showing up out of the blue wasn't completely impossible. The BAU often got requests for consults from across the pond; usually they were handled by consultation over the phone and written reports. But if he really wanted to he could always convince the requesting agency to fly him over. It would be up to Garcia to make sure that didn't happen.

"How in the world do you expect me to do that?" Garcia moaned.

"Oh I'm sure you'll figure it out. I have the utmost faith in you." JJ responded. "Do that and you can consider yourself completely forgiven." She grinned, imaging the pout that was most likely prominently displayed on Penelope's face.

"Fine." Her voice said that she herself wasn't overly confident of success.

"I'm counting on you Pen." She felt a teeny bit bad that this secret was really going to test the limit of Penelope Garcia's control, but after all, she did deserve it.

**Thanks for reading! I can't believe that I'm actually ****10**** chapters in to this story. No one is more surprised than me! A big THANK YOU for all of you that continue to read, follow, and comment – I am so glad that you're still with me!**


	11. Chapter 11

**London Calling Chapter Eleven**

**Disclaimer: Not mine but oh how I wish… **

**A/N – Laying the ground work to bring them together. **

Derek shook his head as Penelope caught sight of him flushed and turned, all the while muttering to herself. For some reason his bubbly pal was totally avoiding him.

"She's done that a time or two to me as well." Hotch commented, having just observed the exchange. "I wrote it off to her still being pissed at me over the requisition to replace JJ." But now he was curious.

"Maybe she was embarrassed by her behavior." Derek surmised.

"You're kidding, right?" Hotch laughed.

Derek flashed a wide smile. "Have you ever known Garcia to be embarrassed?" He scoffed. "Of course I'm kidding. So why would she be going to such lengths to avoid both of us and why does she look guilty?" He narrowed his eyes in the direction of Garcia's lair.

Hotch thought for a moment before sharing. "I did, unfortunately, happen to catch her and Lynch coming out of the supply closest. Both of them were adjusting their clothes and Lynch had lipstick smears on his lips and neck."

Derek thought about it for half a second before declaring, "Nah, too easy."

Hotch considered that and agreed. Meaning there could only be one other reason that she was avoiding him. "She knows something." But she had known about Derek and Emily so that didn't explain why she was avoiding him as well unless… "And she's got a secret."

Derek swung around to look at him. "What kind of secret?"

"A secret that involves JJ and Emily." His gut was telling him that he was on to something.

A slow smile graced Derek's face. "You know, Mama cannot keep a secret," he lifted a brow, "Which is why she is so studiously avoiding us." He rubbed his hands together in glee. "How are we going to break her?"

"We're going to have to tread very lightly and bring our best game. She's already skittish; we need to be extremely cautious. We don't want to spook her." Hotch put his hand to his chin in thought. "What's Emily been like when you've spoken to her recently?"

"She's been in a really good mood, very affectionate." Morgan colored as he remembered their last conversation. She'd also been extremely flirtatious and more than a little suggestive.

"Don't worry I'm not going to ask for details." Hotch jeered, Morgan's expression relating more than his words.

Choosing not to comment Morgan asked Hotch the same. "What about JJ?"

Hotch frowned. Yeah, what about JJ? "I haven't talked to her for three days." He was being ridiculous. She was working. He was working. It's not like they hadn't communicated via email and text, they had, frequently, but he wanted to hear her voice.

"Interesting." He looked at Hotch pointedly. "You think she's avoiding you so she won't spill whatever secret it is that Mama is keeping?"

The pair stood together pondering what that might mean when Rossi came up them. "What are we looking at?" He stood and adopted a similar pose, more out of mockery than camaraderie.

"He might be a useful ally." Morgan commented, looking to Hotch for approval.

"Yeah, but it's the return favor that usually bites you in the ass." He stared at the older profiler. His friend had started questioning JJ's decision to move from the BAU and Hotch's role in it. While he wanted to confide in his friend he wasn't sure what JJ thought about it. He didn't want to overthink it, but he also didn't want to talk about it if she wasn't ready for the rest of the world to know. And he didn't want to convey that in an email or text and chance that she misinterpret something. Long distance relationships blew.

"Yeah, but he's got that snake charmer thing going for him. He could ask the questions and get the answers that we're not able to. Like you said, she's wary, and if we handle it wrong heaven only knows what could happen."

Hotch nodded sagely. "True." He stroked his chin thoughtfully before turning to Rossi. "Okay. We do this in the war room and if anyone comes in we're discussing the Elder case."

Rossi looked at him oddly. "You really need to get a life."

"I'm trying, Dave." He smiled over at Morgan. "That's where you come in." He ushered him in the room and closed the door behind him.

Dave sat in stunned silence as his oldest friend finally confided that he was, in fact, carrying on a flirtation with Jennifer Jareau, one that they had every intention of exploring to its fullest once she arrived back in the states.

"So why all of the secrecy?" He wondered, more than a little miffed that he was going to have to admit to Erin that she'd been correct in her assumption.

Hotch shrugged. "I don't know I was a little impulsive at the airport." He smiled at the memory. "I wasn't sure where it was going to go, if anywhere. Plus there was Will to consider, I wouldn't want to do anything to offend or upset him, and honestly I wasn't sure that JJ wouldn't get over there and miss him and want to fix that relationship."

"Sometimes you got to go after what you want. Devil be damned." Rossi commented.

Hotch nodded. "I wasn't pushing, Dave. There's a difference. I let her know that I was here, waiting for her. She knows I want a relationship with her. She knows I want her."

"Does she know that you're in love with her?"

"I asked the same thing, I'm pretty sure that she doesn't." Morgan piped up.

"Oh and you've been so forthcoming to Emily." Hotch scoffed.

"Well I might not have said the words, but it's implied."

Hotch raised an eyebrow. "You don't think my actions imply the same thing? I don't want the first time I tell her I love her to be thousands of miles apart from her."

"You love her?" Penelope's voice broke in. They had been so focused on their discussion that they failed to notice the door opening until it was too late.

Hotch, not even attempting to backtrack or misdirect, looked up at the stunned blonde and answered honestly. "Yeah, I do."

"Oh!" Her eyes began to bat furiously. "Oh!" She shoved the armful of folders she was holding at Rossi as she moved to enfold Hotch in a smothering hug. "That is fantabulous!" She pulled back and reached for the tissue hidden in her cleavage. "That is, uh, it is beyond words! This is just… Oh. She's going to be…." She was beside herself in her fluster. She took a deep breath, pursed her lips then looked at Hotch. "She's coming home." Then she turned to Derek. "They're both coming home." When that didn't create a stir she hollered, "Soon. Like really soon. They're coming home in a few days!"

Just like that she spilled the beans. What had JJ been thinking when she confided in her anyway? She had absolutely no power over love. And she'd seen the absolute truth in Hotch's eyes when admitted that he was in love with her Gumdrop. So she was going to turn the tables on her friend. She wanted a surprise; boy was she in for one.

~~~CM~~~CM~~~CM

Emily looked at the message she was holding and frowned. She'd re-read it several times but she still couldn't believe it.

"Are you going to tell me what's going on?" When the delivery had come JJ had hoped that it was from Hotch. She'd been intentionally avoiding speaking to him and she was pretty sure that he knew it. She was worried that he would misinterpret the reason.

"It's from my mom." Emily handed the missive to JJ to read.

JJ, snapping out of her own person thoughts, glanced down at the official looking document. "She wants you to meet her in Paris?" She looked up at her friend. "Did she say anything about Paris when you spoke to her on Sunday?"

Emily shook her head. "Not a word." But that wasn't unusual for her mother. She preferred to dictate rather than ask.

"Looks like you'll be going home first class." JJ grinned. "And just think of all the quality time you'll get to spend with your mom."

Emily's eyes popped open. "Bite your tongue. I'll explain to her that I've already got my ticket to go home with you. She'll understand."

"Don't be ridiculous." JJ reasoned. "Go to Paris. Your mom is really looking forward to being a grandma, she's trying hard, give her the benefit of the doubt. She just extended you an olive branch. Besides, think of all the money you'll save if your mom is footing the bill."

Emily's mom had been extremely happy with the baby news and she'd even gone so far as to say some very complimentary things about Derek the last time they spoke. She'd obviously had him investigated, which, while honestly odd, was also kind of touching. She cared to find out who her grandchild's father was. But she still felt bad bailing on JJ. "Are you sure you're okay with it? I feel kind of bad deserting you."

"We'd probably just have each other freaked out by the time we landed anyway." They had both been getting increasingly nervous. Dealing with their significant others via email, text, phone and Skype had been fun, but everything was about to get a lot more real. A fact which was causing some serious nerves for both of them.

"You still think the stomach is going to turn him on?" She'd made the horrible mistake of eating Mexican food the previous night. Baby Morgan had not been appreciative of the cuisine; mommy had been up most of the night, now she was suffering with gas.

"The belly isn't the problem." JJ frowned as she took in her friend's frumpy appearance. She sniffed at the air. "No offence but I think you need a shower."

"Bite me."

"Oh I am sorry, who could fail to be charmed by that?"

"I'm sure you're right." Emily joked. "So, how long are you going to make Hotch wait before you put out?"

"What do you mean? We've been dating for weeks." JJ looked at her oddly. "We've known each other for years."

"You've been talking on the phone, that's not the same as dating. Jeez, you've only barely kissed. You can't just fall into bed with him. Have some dignity."

JJ stared at her. "You're kidding, right?" Because her plan was to do just that.

"What do you mean?"

"Exactly how long were you and Derek dating before Baby Morgan became a reality?" JJ challenged.

"That's different." She thought about it for a minute and looked at JJ.

"Sure." JJ made a big deal of rolling her eyes. "At least Hotch and I will have taken our time before jumping into bed."

"Are you calling me a whore?" She teased, knowing full well that JJ would never consider calling her one.

"If the shoe fits, Cinderella."

Emily winced and looked at her feet. "They don't today. My feet are swollen. Please tell me this is going to go away."

"I told you to take it easy on the salt." JJ scolded.

"Do you really think I'm trashy?"

JJ laughed. "No, I don't think you're trashy."

"Are you only saying that because you had a baby out of wedlock too?"

"I'm sorry, did we time travel and I missed it? Baby out of wedlock," She mumbled. "JJ and Emily's Excellent Adventure. Righteous dude."

Emily snorted and sunk down in the couch. "I'm sorry that I'm being crabby and judgmental. I'm a little nervous about seeing Derek again." She blew out a breath. "Well, I'm not worried about seeing him; I'm more worried about him seeing me." She ran a hand over her stomach.

"Everything is going to be fine, don't worry." JJ sat on the other side of the couch. "And you know what? Judge all you want, I don't care. I'm going to do what I want to do anyway."

"Which is sleep with Hotch."

"Maybe."

"You just want to get laid."

"I can't deny that." It had been a pretty long time.

"What happens if he's bad at it?" Emily queried.

JJ shot a scowl her way. "He is not going to be bad at it." Honestly the man excelled at everything.

"He might be. It's not like he's had a lot of experience." Emily didn't really think that Hotch would be bad in bed she just liked pulling JJ's chain. Plus winding JJ up took her mind off of her own worries.

"Quantity does not equate quality. Are you worried that Derek's only good at it because he's had soooo much practice?" Two could play this game.

Emily swallowed whatever reply she'd been about to make. "Oh my god, I'm in love with a man whore."

"It's probably fair to say reformed man whore." JJ kindly replied.

Emily smiled at JJ, once again reminded of how glad she was that she was such a good friend. "I'm really going to miss this."

JJ rolled her eyes. "You're moving in with me when we get back." Until she found her own place or moved in with Derek. JJ would lay her odds on the latter happening. "We can make plans to meet on the couch next Tuesday."

Emily grinned. "Ooh, by then you should know if Hotch is any good considering that you plan on jumping him at the earliest opportunity possible."

JJ smiled back at her. "I'm confident that he is but by Tuesday I'll be able to give you a testimonial."

"So I'll know if he gets the JJ seal of approval." Emily winked at her.

"Pffft, he's already got that."

Emily sat back and studied her for a minute. "You know, I've never seen you mushy over a guy. It's weird."

"I've never seen you pregnant." JJ shot back lamely.

"I had a rough night, but typically I'm radiant." She replied cheekily. "So, tell me Jay, do you think you'll ever give Henry a brother or sister?"

JJ shrugged, before she was pretty confident that the answer was no. Now she wondered at the possibilities. She was about to embark on a relationship with a man who had a child of his own and rather than scare her it excited her. "You know, I've been thinking a lot about giving him a stepbrother. What do you think of that?" She leaned over and closed Emily's mouth that had dropped open at her admission. "I really like him Em. Like, like. Like times a million."

"Oh for the love of God, you're in love with him. Just admit it."

JJ sat still for a minute then looked at Emily in awe. "I'm in love with Aaron." Her smile blossomed across her face at the acknowledgement.

"Fine. But I don't what that to cloud your judgment I'm expecting an honest evaluation."

**Thanks for reading! And thank you to all of those that take the time to leave me feedback and follow the story. I really appreciate the support!**


	12. Chapter 12

**London Calling Chapter Twelve**

**Disclaimer – Not mine.**

**A/N – Can I just say that I really love these couples? I know that this would never happen on the show but man if only….**

Emily arrived at the room the front desk had directed her to and frowned. Why would her mother book the Bridal Suite? Shaking her head she looked at the key card and the suite number, sure enough they matched. Maybe this had been the only suite available; heaven forbid her mother book adjoining rooms. Shaking her head she swiped the key and opened the door.

Stepping in to the suite she was stunned by the smell of roses that permeated the air, she was stunned as she looked around the room to find that the smell wasn't left over from a previous guest, there were actually roses everywhere. Convinced that she had, indeed, been given the wrong key she pivoted and was about to open the door when a noise alerted her that she wasn't alone. God, how embarrassing, she stumbled in on an unsuspecting bride and groom. She hoped she could make her exit before she was discovered.

"You're in the right room, Princess."

Emily's heart lurched at the sound; in stunned disbelief she dropped her hand from the door handle turned back around to find her very own Derek Morgan nonchalantly walking towards her.

Her brow furrowed in question. "How?" She looked around the room expecting her mother to spring forward at any moment.

"It's just me baby girl."

She wasn't sure when he started to read minds. She looked at him in confusion. "I don't understand."

"I wanted to make damn sure you got back home where you belong safely." He'd finally managed to make his way across the room and now stood directly in front of her. "You're carrying my precious cargo."

He was here. With her. "I don't understand." She repeated. Derek flashed her one of the megawatt grins he was so reckless with. She often wondered if he had any idea of the havoc it caused to the female population; the twinkle in his eyes convinced her that he must.

"Damn I've missed you."

She would have replied in kind but his mouth was hot and demanding on hers and she figured she would give him an hour, two tops, to stop. Unfortunately much too soon for her liking he was stepping back. "Let me get a look at you." His gaze gravitated to her stomach. She watched in wonder as his eyes misted.

His hands were suddenly covering her stomach. "Hello baby." If she'd ever had any doubt that he wanted his child the look of pure longing and joy that radiated from him erased it. His words gave further support to his contentment. "I can't wait for the first doctor appointment to hear the heartbeat and to see the sonogram." He looked up at her. "We're going to find out, right?"

She arched a brow at him. "Find out?" Her brain just wasn't firing on all cylinders.

"What we're having. We're going to find out if it's a boy or girl." His hands were moving in soothing circles over her abdomen. "My mom is beside herself." He grinned at her. "Oh, baby, but she's got nothing on your momma, seriously from everything you said I wasn't sure your momma could smile."

Emily stared at him in surprise, his pronouncement knocking her out of her stupor. "You've seen my mom?"

He let out a chuckle, forgetting that she was still in the dark about exactly how he came to be in Paris. "I have, I couldn't have done all this without her."

The thought that he'd worked with his mom to orchestrate this surprise completely stunned her. "My mother helped you plan this?" Emily took in the suite, the beautifully appointed, plush, _bridal_ suite. Her eyes flew back to Derek. "What exactly did you say to my mom?"

"I told her that I wanted to fly over and bring you both home." He said still focused on her stomach.

She knew he was leaving something out when he didn't quite meet her eyes. "That's all? You wanted to come and bring us home." She looked at him puzzled. "And why did I have to meet you in Paris?"

Now he looked up at her and gifted her with another damn megawatt smile that always made her weak-kneed, further confirming her suspicion that something else was going on. "I thought it would be a nice story for the kids when they get older."

"Whoa. What? Kids?" She placed a hand on her stomach. "There is only one in there. Trust me." He'd said kids. As in more than one. Her mind raced at the implication.

"Maybe I'm hoping you like this one so much you'll consider doing it again."

He was doing it again, grinning like he knew a secret he was just dying to share with her. He was a cheeky bastard, she wasn't sure why she'd always found that so appealing before. "Have you been drinking?" Her eyes narrowed suspiciously.

"Nope, just busily planning our future." He stepped back into her personal space and pressed a fast kiss to her lips. "It's going to be good."

She looked at him bemused. "Is that right?" She shook her head. "So tell me, did you charm the Ambassador." She swore his smile grew.

"Well, she did give me her blessing."

"Her blessing?" Emily swore she could hear her heart beat. There was only one thing that a man asked a woman's families' blessing for.

"I told your mother that I was in love with you and I wanted to marry you."

"Why would you do that?" Emily, knowing her mother, panicked. "Why would you say that to my mother? When you say stuff like that she's going to expect a wedding to follow." She was planning on blaming the tears that pricked her eyes on her raging hormones.

Derek's grin faltered at the sight of her tears and the pure panic in her voice. "Emily," He said calmly, "Why do you think I would say that to your mother?"

He looked like he expected her to have an answer. "Well obviously you want her to like you. Lying is not the best way to go about that happening." She focused at a spot on the rug, willing herself not to cry.

"Baby girl, I don't give a rat's ass if your momma likes me. All I care about is you." He forced her chin up making her look him in the eyes. "I did not lie to your momma."

"Then why would you tell her that you wanted to marry me?" She asked him in genuine confusion.

"I've spent most of my adult life trying not to get tied down." He answered honestly. "There's never been anyone that I could see myself spending my life with or wanting to spend my life with. Then you came into the picture. I wish I would have had the stones to tell you that before you left, but you were determined to leave and I didn't want to stand in your way."

The breath swooshed out of her body as realization hit her. He loved her. "It probably wouldn't have changed my mind." For the first time he saw his smile slip. "Don't get me wrong, Derek. I would have _wanted_ to but I told myself I was doing the right thing. I don't know that I would have believed you felt the same way about me as I did you then. I wasn't ready."

"You love me." It was a statement, not a question. His smile was back in place, stretched fully across his face.

She lifted a shoulder. "You're alright." She grinned back at him. "I could probably stand waking up to your face for the next fifty or so years."

JJ sat in a bank of chairs beside Henry and couldn't help but think back to the last time she'd been at the airport. Then she'd been filled with apprehension, the initial excitement in the assignment had quickly turned to dread all because of the man that had been with her. She hadn't been sure why that was until he kissed her. Then it had become crystal clear.

Now she sat fidgeting worse than Henry. She was elated to be returning to the States and Aaron Hotchner. She couldn't wait to see his face when she showed up at his door. She'd planned on dropping Henry off with Will and going over to surprise him. She'd even had Garcia arrange to spend the day with Jack. Her dreaded butterflies were back.

"How much longer mommy?" Henry was feeding off her anxiety this time as well. No tears this round, he was too excited to be returning home.

"They should be calling our flight soon buddy." JJ ruffled his hair and looked at her watch.

"Is daddy going to be waiting for us when we get off the plane?" Henry had been asking for his dad a lot more since his visit. Together they let him know that when JJ and he got back to Virginia his daddy was going to be living in a new house. JJ wasn't sure how much Henry actually comprehended it though. She feared tears in her future.

"No, daddy isn't going to be at the airport. We're going to surprise him, remember? We're going to go visit him at his new house." JJ reiterated, hoping against hope that he would take the transition easily. She looked down at her phone trying to find pictures of the place that Will had sent her thinking if she showed Henry his new house it would reinforce the idea in his young brain.

"Hotch!"

Without looking up JJ smiled, glad that he remembered Hotch bringing them to the airport before. "Nope." JJ grinned. "Hotch isn't going to be there either. Mommy is going to surprise…Henry?" She tossed her phone in her purse as her son suddenly stood and bolted from her. She only made it a step when she faltered. Henry hadn't been questioning whether Hotch would be picking them up at the airport he was excited by the man's presence in front of him. She watched in stunned silence as her son threw himself at the man that she'd been thinking about nonstop since she'd said goodbye to him months before.

His eyes didn't leave her as he strolled back to where she stood transfixed. "Surprise."

"So apparently confiding in Garcia probably wasn't the wisest decision I've ever made."

"Depends on your view." Hotch gave her a lopsided grin. "I thought maybe you'd like an escort home."

Her brows raised in surprise. "You flew eight hours to escort me home?" He looked so wonderful standing in front of her in his faded jeans holding her son.

"I thought it had a certain romantic flair. It's been brought to my attention that women like to be romanced." He approached her slowly. "Just so you know, I've ever put this much effort into wooing a woman."

JJ bit her lip at the admission. "I guess that makes me pretty lucky."

"I sure hope you feel lucky." He shrugged. His eyes never left hers and she wondered how anyone could ever find him detached and unemotional. He was giving off so much heat it was surprising that the smoke detectors weren't going off.

"I have to admit that I was kind of hoping that I'd get the same reaction from you that I got from Henry." He commented a little disgruntled.

JJ laughed. The admission spurred her to moving into him. Careful not to dislodge Henry she leaned in and gave him a kiss. While sweet, it was not reminiscent of their last encounter, it left them both wanting. "You know you it's not necessary for you to actually woo me, right?"

His arm encircled her waist, not eager to create a distance between them. "Man, I wish I would have known that earlier. Now this just seems desperate."

"Mommy was going to surprise you." Henry told him, bringing their attention back to the young boy in his arms.

"Everything about your mommy surprises me, Henry." He looked at the boy fondly. "Has she always been this pretty?"

The notion of flirting completely outside his comprehension Henry answered honestly. "Yes." The little boy giggled before catapulting himself into his pretty mom's arms then struggling to get down and back to his chair where his stuffed cat awaited him.

JJ watched him settle into his seat then turned back to Hotch. "I can't believe that you're really here. I truly did plan on surprising you." She smiled up at him. "Probably not as grandly, but I did have hopes it would turn out spectacularly."

Hotch reached for her once more now that he was unencumbered. "Yeah?"

"Oh yeah." JJ confirmed. "It involved me showing up at your house in stilettos and a trench coat." She took delight in the way his eyes flared.

"One good turn deserves another JJ, there is nothing stopping you from going forward with your plan."

"It's not the same, you've already seen me. Where's the surprise in that?" JJ pouted prettily, enjoying their flirtation.

"I can promise you that if you were to show up at my doorstep in only heels and a coat I would be adequately surprised. You could call me from the sidewalk on your way to the door announcing yourself and that still wouldn't diminish my surprise."

She laughed before throwing her arms around his neck. "I'll keep that in mind." Then she kissed him like she wanted to the minute she saw him standing in front of her.

They stood wrapped in one another trying to catch their breath. "That alone was worth sixteen hours in the air." Hotch leaned forwarded and placed another soft kiss on her mouth. "In case you didn't know I really missed you."

**To be continued… Thanks for reading! I know that some of you thought that I would follow through with having JJ and Emily doing the surprising but I really liked the idea of turning the tables on them. Plus I kind of liked the idea of the guys being swoon worthy – that was my goal. I hope I accomplished it.**


	13. Chapter 13

**London Calling Chapter Thirteen**

**Disclaimer: Not Mine.**

**A/N – Sorry life got really busy with both work and Christmas. Hope Santa was good to all! My title doesn't work any longer but I'm not going to change it. They're back but they have some stuff to work through. This is mainly a JJ and Hotch chapter with a little JJ and Emily mixed in. **

JJ sighed as she looked at her phone again. She'd been home almost a week but oddly enough she missed Hotch more now than when she'd been in London. The flight home had been ridiculously romantic. He'd been unbelievably sweet and attentive, to both her and Henry. Unfortunately almost as soon as they landed he'd gotten called in on a case.

It was a bad one; she knew that from the sporadic texts he had been able to send. He hadn't had the luxury of a phone call. She missed the sound of his voice and that made her feel guilty. She knew better than most the importance of his work.

"It's not going to ring just because you're staring at it."

JJ shook her head at her new roommate. "Explain to me again why you think living here would be best?" She needed a distraction and was glad of the one that Emily provided. It wasn't that she didn't want her there she just didn't quite understand why her friend was choosing to stay with her rather than the man she was in love with.

Emily sunk down into the plush seat and stared over at her friend. "I'm letting him romance me." She ran a hand over her stomach. "I want this time to be romantic and sweet. I want to make sure that this is something he really wants."

JJ raised a brow. "He met you in Paris, in the bridal suite of Le Meurice, and according to you he romanced the shit out of you. Trust me, he wants it and you. You should be living together now to get used to one another before the baby comes and you have to get used to another new change." She reasoned.

"We're going to look for a place." Emily confessed with a sly grin.

"One of Derek's _four_ homes won't suit?" JJ asked dryly.

"We want to pick it out together." Emily frowned at JJ. "Is this your way of telling me you no longer want me here?"

JJ sighed, sorry that she was taking her mood out on her friend. "No, of course not, you're welcome as long as you want. I just," she shrugged, "You realize that you're nuts, right?" She envied Emily's easy relationship with Derek.

"Is this you being jealous?" Emily raised a brow, knowing instinctively how to get the best of JJ.

JJ stared at her incredulous at the suggestion. "Jealous? What am I jealous of exactly?"

Emily grinned widely; she'd missed her daily bantering with JJ. "Maybe jealous is the wrong word. You're really just cranky because you haven't been laid yet." Emily giggled. "So you want to explain to me why you haven't sealed the deal with Hotchman?"

JJ sighed again, not bothering to argue the latest claim; she was a little testy for that specific reason. She wanted him, badly. "Oddly enough we were on a public flight and couldn't leave Henry sitting alone in the row while we joined the mile high club. Then pretty much as soon as we landed he got a call." No time for any one on one activity. She frowned as she realized that she hadn't heard from him in almost forty-eight hours.

"You know it is okay for you to call him, right?" Emily told her as she watched JJ glance again at her phone.

"He's on a case, Em. I don't need him to check in with me." But a quick text would have been nice.

"Of course you don't need him to. Want and need are two different things, JJ. It's okay to want to hear his voice, just that small reassurance that he's okay. I get that." She chuckled at the amazement on her friends face. "You know, he could probably stand to hear your voice as well."

That little encouragement was all she needed to reach for the phone. Just as she grasped it his ring tone alerted.

"Isn't that adorable?" Emily quipped as Lady A's Just a Kiss sounded.

"Bite me." JJ responded before breathing into the phone. "Hello."

"If that's a request, I'm interested."

She grinned. "Are you okay? I was worried about you. You probably haven't gotten any sleep." She didn't let him get a word in edgewise.

Hotch let out a self-depreciating chuckle. "I slept almost the entire way to Seattle and back." And had been ribbed mercilessly for it by his team.

"You're back!" JJ squealed.

"Just barely. I'm going into the office finishing the report then I plan to head home and see Jack. I was hoping that I'd be able to see you tonight too." His voice had dropped an octave setting off a responsive tingling in JJ.

"You'll have a better chance to see me than you will Jack. Did you forget you okayed a sleepover with his friend Tommy?" After much cajoling from his son and after Garcia did an extensive background on the family, Hotch finally conceded.

The dejected sigh told her that he had, indeed, forgotten. "You know he would reschedule if you asked him to."

"I can't ask him that. Look how long it took before I finally agreed to it." The change of plans had definitely affected his mood. "Maybe I'll just go home and get some sleep and we can meet up tomorrow? It's Saturday, we can make a day of it."

Now it was her turn to feel dejected. "Oh, okay. That's fine." She bit her bottom lip.

"I'll give you a call in the morning?"

"Sure." He disconnected and left JJ staring at the phone wondering what the hell had just happened.

"Hey, what the hell was that?" Emily asked. She'd forgotten that she had an audience.

JJ was still frowning at her phone. "That was me getting blown off."

"WHAT?"

The yell snapped JJ out of it enough to focus on Emily and repeat the conversation.

"Oh sweetie, you know how he gets when he's working or coming off a case. I wouldn't take it personally." Emily leaned forward in her chair. "Hell, I wouldn't take it at all."

"So what am I supposed to do, just show up unannounced?" She had to admit, the idea had some merit. If only to let him know that he couldn't and shouldn't just dismiss her.

"Exactly." Emily nodded. "Go make yourself all pretty and slide into that get up that you bought especially for the big occasion."

"I didn't buy…." She stopped the denial when she saw Emily's look of disbelief. "Fine. But that is for after we've already, you know. I can't just show up at his house wearing lingerie."

"That's what the jacket is for." Emily rolled her eyes. "Don't be stupid. And don't let his mood deter you. He had a rough case, his usual method of dealing with it, Jack, is unavailable. You yourself said he wanted to see you after he saw Jack but when he realized that Jack wasn't going to be there he flaked. You just need to give him another option to release his pent up emotions." She winked at JJ. "What better way than a physical release?"

She was incredibly torn. She really liked the idea but was cautious. "He won't think I'm being too forward?"

"He'll be happy that one of you isn't completely stupid."

JJ laughed. "I liked you better when I was the smart one in the friendship."

Hotch glanced at the phone sitting in front of him. He'd come home to an empty house in a foul mood. He realized that he made a misstep with JJ almost as soon as he'd hung up the phone but he wasn't sure how to correct it. He had let his disappointment over not being able to see his son override everything else.

He scrubbed a hand over his face and wished for the hundredth time that he was better at this type of thing. Smoother. He wished Dave or Derek would have been around to offer advice but Dave had raced off to find Erin as soon as they landed and Derek was still on leave. He could just call her. She appreciated honesty. He made the decision to do just that when his doorbell rang.

He didn't stop to look through the peephole as he grabbed the door opening it wide, he was so certain that JJ was going to be on the other side. "Hey." His smile faltered as Beth stood on his welcome mat.

"Aaron." She breathed out his name. "Hi. Surprise." She threw her arms around him. "God, I've missed you."

Hotch detangled himself from her arms and stepped back, sniffing at the air. "Have you been drinking?" He asked as she stepped into his foyer and began to remove her coat.

"A little." She giggled. "I was out with some of my girlfriends…"

"I thought you were in New York." Hotch interrupted as his mind worked furiously trying to figure out how to get out of this situation.

"I was. I came back." She smiled, failing to notice his less than welcoming response. Turning she hung her coat on the coat tree. "I can't stop thinking about you." She advanced on him once more, her arms went to embrace him again but he grabbed them before they could encircle him.

"I was wrong, you know." She stated. "I don't know why I didn't try to see what you were saying." She scrunched up her nose. "Well, the truth is I was jealous. I should have known that you and what's her name were just friends but you were so concerned over her and to be honest a girl doesn't like it when the guy she's with is worried about another girl, you know?" She tilted her head at him. "I was with my girlfriends tonight and we were talking about you and they told me that I was stupid and I needed to get off my butt and get over here and fix it." She giggled. "So here I am." She flung her arms wide open.

Hotch frowned. "How did you even know I was home?"

Beth pouted for a minute trying to remember how she knew that fact. "Oh, your SUV is out front silly." She smiled, "The girls wouldn't have just dropped me off if you hadn't been home."

"Did it occur to you that Jack could have been home? Do you think he would have appreciated you coming here drunk?" He knew that he certainly didn't.

"You're so cute when you're stern." She giggled. "Maybe I deserve a spanking." She pulled her body flush against his. "Oh, I definitely deserve a spanking."

"What you need is a cup of coffee." He couldn't put her back in a taxi in the shape she was in.

"I don't want coffee. I want you." She boldly announced leaning forward and kissing his mouth.

He hit the wall jerking away from her. "Beth, I'm in a relationship." The words stopped her forward progress.

"But." She looked around the home not seeing anything different from the last time she'd been there. No signs that he had a woman in his life or in his home.

"Let's get you that coffee." He took her arm and led her back to the kitchen.

"Where is this woman that you're supposedly involved with?" She managed to convince herself during the short walk that he was giving her the brush off because she'd broken off with him.

"She's at home. I made a stupid error in judgment this evening and apparently you are my reward." Hotch grumbled as he pulled the coffee from the cabinet.

"It's not necessary for you to invent a woman to make me grovel for my mistake." She slid up against him and pressed herself to his back. "I'm sorry; let me show you how sorry I am." Her hands were traveling forward and downward from his hips when the doorbell rang and he jumped.

"Jesus! I'm not lying, I'm in a relationship! Now sit down so you can sober up." He growled, wondering who the hell was at his door now. He stalked back through the living room to the front door and pulled it open, once more not bothering to look through the peephole.

"I thought you might be interested in some company."

He stared at her for a long minute before stepping out on his stoop and gathering her into his arms. He held her tightly, sighing softly into her hair, before easing back slightly and capturing her mouth in a welcomed kiss.

"HER! That's who you're in a relationship with?" The screech had JJ pulling back and looking from a disheveled Beth to a clearly agitated Hotch.

"I can explain."

Had she not seen the genuine pleasure in his eyes when he realized who it was at his door, or felt it in his welcoming hug and kiss, she might have been skeptical. "You may want to button your blouse." JJ commented to Beth.

"What?" At JJ's remark he turned to see that Beth had indeed attempted to remove her top. "She had that on when I left her in the kitchen." He turned back to JJ.

"Well this sucks." Beth grumbled as she turned to head back to the kitchen.

"Am I going to have to put up with a parade of disgruntled girlfriends coming around in an attempt to seduce you?" She asked Hotch jokingly.

"Why aren't you mad? I told you that I would see you tomorrow and you come over here and find me with another woman and you aren't upset?" Most women would have responded much differently.

JJ raised her brow. "Should I be?"

"Well no, but that's not the point." He realized that he wanted her to be a touch jealous.

"You're sincere happiness to my presence here was enough to convince me that you weren't doing anything shady. Plus Beth was aware that you were in a relationship. You'd obviously already told her you weren't interested." She leaned up and placed a soft kiss against his lips. "Now, if you wouldn't have been surprised by that fact that she'd started to undress then we might have had a problem."

He pulled her close when she would have stepped away. "God I'm glad you came over. I was just getting ready to call you when the doorbell rang. I thought it was you."

"I wanted to surprise you." They jumped at a loud crash from the kitchen. "What do you say we get rid of her and start over?"

"That's a really good plan." He pulled her into the foyer with him and closed the front door. "You want to give me your coat and I'll hang it up?"

"That might not be a good idea."

He finally noticed what she was wearing and recalled their airport conversation. His hands involuntarily reached for the belt.

"Aaron," she slapped at his hands and hissed, "I need some clothes."

"Do you think if we were really quiet she'd just go away?" He questioned as another loud noise came from the kitchen followed by a quick reassurance that everything was okay.

JJ gave him an 'are you serious' stare.

"Fine." He grabbed the belt and pulled her to him. "I'd just like to say that I really thought the first time you were in my room I'd be undressing you, not dressing you." He led her into his room and pulled a pair of boxer shorts and tee shirt from his dresser and handed them over to her.

JJ stepped out of the heels she was wearing. "I always assumed the first time I had your boxers in my hand it would have been because I just removed them from your body." Her hand rested on the belt of her jacket.

"Do you want me to …?" He swallowed the word _leave_ as her coat flapped open. "Holy shit." She was perfection. Not caring that Beth was waiting for them to join her in the kitchen he stepped forward and slid his hands around her bare midsection, groan at the feel of her silky skin and the pebbling of her breasts. He couldn't prevent himself from leaning forward and kissing the top of her breast, pushed up by the very pretty bra. Nor could he stop his hands from skimming her ass and coming to rest on her thighs where her garter belt met her stockings. He was enchanted by the soft skin he encountered there.

"We better stop." JJ whimpered as his mouth descended on hers.

"I'm not sure I can." Hotch moaned as her hips rocked into his.

"Wow. You two really are a couple. I thought you might just be trying to get rid of me." Beth held a coffee cup in her hand as she leaned against the doorframe and stared in fascination at the couple in front of her. "You're really hot together."

**Thanks for reading! Don't worry, JJ and Hotch will eventually consummate their relationship without an audience! Next chapter Emily and Derek will begin their search for the perfect house and Derek will continue the romancing. I hope this was worth the wait. A huge thank you for all that continue to read, follow and review, it is greatly appreciated!**


	14. Chapter 14

L**ondon Calling Chapter 14**

**Disclaimer: Not Mine.**

**A/N – Emily gets some much needed prodding. **

"Well, what's wrong with this one?" Derek asked as they left the latest property that Emily was sure to find fault with. It was the tenth home they looked at in as many days. At first he took her concerns to heart and thought they were legitimate, now he was seriously beginning to wonder.

"The baby's room faces the east." She commented her nose scrunched in thought.

He blew out a breath and told himself not to get angry. "O-kay." He wondered if Barnes and Noble carried a pregnancy translation book because lately she'd been saying a lot of stuff that he just didn't get.

Emily just smiled and decided to let him in on the perceived problem. "The sun comes up in the East. The baby will never sleep in if the sun is always shining in the room."

"That's what window treatments are for." He responded patiently. "We can get the windows tinted, put up blinds, curtains; there are a lot of options that can correct that problem.

"I'm driving you nuts, aren't I?" She winced.

"You're certainly not making this easy." Derek agreed.

Emily sighed and turned to look back at the house they just exited. It really was beautiful. The nicest one they'd looked at so far. "I just want everything to be perfect."

"Nothing is perfect, Princess."

"If it helps, I liked this one the best out of all of the ones we've looked at." Emily offered.

"Okay." Derek reached over and joined their hands. "What did you like best?"

"The kitchen." She answered, promptly. "Keep in mind, I can't cook, but I'm going to learn. JJ's already taught me spaghetti and meatballs." She beamed at the accomplishment.

Derek just grinned. "We won't starve. I can cook." He shook his head at the pretty brunette who managed to surprise him daily. "Okay, what don't you like about the house?"

Again, she didn't hesitate. "It's, like, half an hour away from JJ's house, that's, like, an hour in traffic, probably more."

Derek bit back a groan. He loved JJ, truly he did, but he really needed to break Emily's dependency on her. "What are you going to do if JJ and Hotch ever manage to get it together enough to get together?" They'd finally managed to get rid of Hotch's old girlfriend when Jack started acting up. He liked JJ well enough, but he didn't like that Henry liked Hotch. The idea that he might have to share his father with another kid was not going over well.

Emily stopped and turned to Derek. "Are you jealous of JJ?"

He paused for a second before answering, "Yeah, a little bit I am." He leaned forward and tugged at the chain around her neck. "Maybe I wouldn't be so bad if you could help me understand why this is around your neck and not on your finger?" He groaned as the tears began to well up in her eyes. "Emily, don't – Emily. Ah, come on." The wobbling of the chin was his undoing. "Come on, Sweetheart, I'm sorry. Don't cry. You know I can't stand it when you cry."

"I know. That's why I do it." Emily blubbered. "I'm not trying to be difficult. I've got all this stuff going on." She raised watery eyes up to her fiancé. "You know what happened today? I got a stretch mark." She started to raise her top only to have him stop her. "Do you know how hard it is to have a baby?" She glared at him. "No, you don't. You know who does?"

"Let me guess, JJ?"

"Yes, she does and when she mocks me it's not meant in a mean spirited way." She snapped.

He held in a sigh as he watched the changing of her moods. Surely someone had a book on how to navigate this? He was glad that she had been noncommittal when he suggested having more than one kid, he wasn't sure that he was going to survive this one. "Why don't we go home and I'll rub some cream on your stretch mark?"

There was the chin wobble again signaling a fast change. "Would you? That would be really nice. I'd like that. JJ says that cocoa butter really does work if you're diligent."

Emily repeated the story to JJ the following day. Derek had been called in on a case. They'd been very fortunate to have a couple of local requests for the services of the BAU.

"So clearly he's going to hate me." JJ commented as she sipped her iced tea.

"I don't know what comes over me. I see it coming but I'm helpless to prevent it from happening."

"Pregnancy brain." JJ sympathized. "A lot of people think it's just a myth."

"I feel like I'm trying to sabotage this relationship before it even starts." Emily admitted.

JJ shrugged. "Maybe you are?" They were sitting at lunch. Emily had started her job with the local Interpol office and JJ was currently on loan to the State Department until she decided what it was that she really wanted to do.

"Why would I do that?" Emily asked, "I want this to work."

"Then stop holding back." She reached forward and tugged the chain around Emily's neck much the same way that Derek had. She let out a deep whistle when she saw the ring. "Go all in."

Emily stared at her in surprise. "How did you know?"

JJ smiled. "You pat it every so often to remind yourself that it's there." She held up the ring. "It's too pretty of a ring to hide, Emily. And what you have with Derek is too special to keep hidden away. You should be celebrating. You should be buying that house you loved and moving in together. We should be planning a wedding."

Emily let out shudder. "Let's get through the birth first."

"Oh come on, where's your sense of adventure?" JJ grinned wickedly. "Dave loves to throw weddings."

"Aren't you funny?"

JJ giggled. "I am, truly I am. Here's what you need to do…."

Derek sighed as he opened his front door. He'd hoped to be spending the evening with Emily but her phone kept going straight to voicemail. It was scary how quickly he adapted to being used to seeing her daily. He paused as he caught a scent of something that smelled really good coming from his kitchen.

"I let myself in. I hope you don't mind."

He smiled at the vision she presented. The 'Kiss the Cook' apron that Rossi had given him one year for Christmas was now splattered with what he was going to guess was spaghetti sauce. "I wouldn't have given you a key if I minded." He moved into her space and lightly kissed her lips.

"I made you dinner." She said with a touch of uncertainty.

"It smells good." He was puzzled by her mood. That in itself wasn't exactly odd though. He returned her smile as she gestured for him to go into the dining room.

"I thought maybe I could spend the night." She said to his back.

That stopped him in his tracks. "Okay." He turned to study her, now seriously wondering what was going on. She'd always been a mystery but she was pulling out all the stops today. "Again, you're always welcome here. I told you that before, I want you to stay here always." He moved in front of her and reached down for her hands. The sight of his ring on her finger, rather than on the chain, knocked him for a loop.

"I put an offer on the house we looked at the other day." The words tumbled out.

"Come again." He looked at the ring then back to her face. "You did what?" He watched as she took a deep breath and blew it out.

She'd rehearsed the conversation so many times trying to imagine what he would say the only thing stuck with her was, "Listen, I love you and you love me, we're having a baby, don't you think it's time that we lived together?"

The grin split his face. "I think that argument may have originally been mine."

She looked adorably confused. "Oh, I wondered where I heard it." She smiled back. "It's a pretty good argument."

"So you bought me a house?" He questioned.

"I bought us a house." Emily clarified. "Well, maybe. I put an offer in." It was a huge and scary big deal, but it felt right.

He laughed as he leaned forward and kissed her. "Do you have any more surprises for me?" He wasn't sure how much more his heart could take.

"The night's young, I'm sure I can come up with a few more." She winked rakishly at him suddenly feeling light and happy.

"Is that right?"

She remembered one of JJ's more interesting pregnancy facts. "Did you know that women in their second trimester are more aroused? Something about the blood flow…." She trailed off as his eyes flared, obviously not having heard anything after the word aroused.

"Is dinner ready?" He was already reaching for her.

"We can always order take out." She laughed as he scooped her up.

Later as they lay in bed Derek couldn't help but ask. "Not that I'm complaining but what brought on this change?"

"I told JJ about the house and how I have a tendency to say things that I really don't mean." At his raised brow she chuckled. "Honestly, I don't know how I came up with the sun rising in the East." She rolled her eyes. "I'm so close to getting everything I ever wanted that I didn't even know I wanted that it really freaks me out sometime."

"Everything that you wanted that you didn't know you wanted?" Derek looked at her questioningly.

"I like kids, I adore Henry and Jack, but I never considered that I wanted one for my own." She looked over at him, looking like a GQ model. "I sat across from you for years. I always appreciated your," her she gave a wicked smile, "let's just say your whole package," she giggled, "But I never would have crossed that line while I was working with you."

"But you wanted to?" His grin had her smiling back.

"Yes." She answered honestly. "There were times that I really wanted something more. We were becoming closer and I started to see you had so much more going on than just that pretty boy thing."

"Thank you, I think."

"When you surprised me in Paris I told myself that everything was going to be okay and everything was going to work out. I realized that you loved me. You really loved me."

"I do really love you."

"I know, but then the fantasy ended and we came back here."

He looked at her in confusion. "What exactly ended, Emily?"

"It was just so surreal. You were there and confessing your love for me in the most romantic city in the world, you asked me to marry you and I accepted and we made love and stayed in a little happy bubble, then we came back to reality. I had to start a new job. I had to find a place to live, and I got a stretch mark." She frowned down at the stomach that continued to expand.

He smiled down at her and ran a hand over the silvery barely noticeable mark. "Hey, we're still in that happy bubble. We can be here as long as you want."

"I know." She looked at him with watery eyes. "That's kind of what JJ told me."

"I'm really glad that JJ is such a good friend to you." He truly realized the truth in that statement.

"I hope you still feel that way after I tell you what else I did today." Emily replied cryptically.

Derek linked their hands together. "I've liked all of the other surprises you've thrown my way. What else you got for me, Princess?"

She smiled sweetly at him and said, "Did you know that Dave can throw together a wedding in a matter of hours?" She'd been surprised at how quickly David Rossi acted when she called him to discuss the possibility of getting married. She was kind of convinced that he was a serial romantic.

Derek was still for so long that Emily was worried that he was angry until he started to laugh. "I've gotta call my mama."

"I called her this afternoon." She bit her lip.

"You really go all in when you decide to take charge." He leaned forward and captured her lips with his. "God, I love you."

"So you're not mad?" She said in between the drugging kisses he was plying her with.

He shook his head. "Why would I be mad? I want to marry you." He laughed. "One thing for sure, life with you will never be dull!"

**Thanks for reading! And as always thanks for the reviews and follows. I'm really glad that people are still reading!**


	15. Chapter 15

**London Calling Chapter 15**

**Disclaimer: Not mine but oh how I enjoy them…**

**A/N – I'm trying to get back on a regular posting schedule. JJ and Hotch finally make some progress…. **

Aaron Hotchner was a frustrated man. In more ways than one, he ruefully admitted to himself as he watched JJ bend over to pick up the toys that the boys neglected to pick up earlier in the evening. "Leave that stuff alone. Jack can clean his toys up tomorrow."

"Then he'd be angry that he was stuck with the job alone." JJ commented, more than a touch frustrated herself, as she continued to clean. They'd spent what was meant to be a relaxing family evening refereeing two bickering boys. When they finally got them to settle down and watch a movie they managed to wedge themselves between the two single parents.

"I'm sorry Jack is being so difficult." Hotch's voice was reflective of the confusion he was dealing with over the troublesome fact.

Immediately contrite JJ stopped the cleanup effort and moved over to where he was standing forlornly. "He'll come around." She gazed wistfully at the two, now peaceful, boys on the couch.

"He didn't behave this way when Beth came over." Hotch blurted out then winced when JJ huffed and turned to resume her previous occupation. "I didn't mean anything by that. He adores you, JJ. We talked a lot about you and Henry while you were gone and how when you returned from London how the four of us were going to be spending more time together. He was excited about it." Which only made his current behavior so odd.

Slightly mollified that he wasn't implying that Jack preferred Beth to herself she turned back to him. "He's jealous, Aaron. When Beth came over," she couldn't prevent a sneer, "She gave Jack her undivided attention. As did you." She looked over at her son. "Now there's another little boy who daddy is paying attention to. He likes Henry well enough, but he doesn't like the idea of sharing you with him."

"So how do we convince him he's gaining more than he's losing?" Hotch asked softly, surprising her by being closer than she expected.

"I don't know, maybe we should step back a little and give him some space, let him get used to the idea." It wasn't an ideal solution but maybe Jack just needed a little more time.

"What exactly do you mean by step back?" His voice was dangerously low.

"Maybe it would help if Henry and I weren't around all the time?" JJ offered.

The idea was repugnant to Hotch and he didn't waste any time telling her as much. "So I should reward his bad behavior by giving in to him and giving him exactly what he wants?"

"I'm not saying we're going to completely disappear from your lives…"

"No." He responded adamantly, not allowing her to finish her sentence.

"Aaron, I'm trying to compromise here."

"It's not about compromise, JJ. It's emotional blackmail; he wants me to prove that I love him more than you and Henry by choosing to distance myself from you."

"He's scared, Aaron." She clung to the teddy bear that she just picked up, his words setting her heart aflutter. She wondered if he even realized what he just admitted. "He's already lost so much in his young life. You are the single most important person in his world." Which was why she was willing to do whatever necessary to put the boy at ease.

He reached out and plucked the bear from her grasp. "I know that. Which is why creating a distance between you and I wouldn't work. I'd be miserable and that would impact everyone."

JJ gave a slight grin, relieved that he didn't readily accept her sacrifice. "This isn't about you." She jumped slightly as he dropped the bear and reached for her hands, bringing her closer to him.

"It's about all of us." His next words proved he did realize his earlier statement. "My love for Jack doesn't eclipse my love for you."

"Your love for me?" JJ parroted softly, stepping closer still, aligning her body with his.

Hotch slipped one arm around her back as the other came up to her face, his hand palming her cheek. "I love you, JJ." He confirmed softly.

"I love you, too." She sighed happily, leaning in to fuse her mouth to his. "You make me so happy."

The tender moment quickly became steamy. "I'd like to make you happier." He bumped his hips into her making her moan as she felt the evidence of his arousal.

"Oh, I'd like that too." Her eyes flashed. "Boy would that make me happy."

"Then spend the night with me." He pleaded.

JJ turned at looked at Jack and Henry passed out on the couch. "The boys…"

"Are out cold." He finished for her. "We can put them in Jack's room." He nibbled at her lips working away on her resolve. "Say yes, JJ."

"I'm afraid to touch them. What if they wake up and don't want to go back to sleep?" She wasn't' sure she could take another disappointment. Meanwhile, Hotch was busily coaxing her into submission, his hands molding her body to him, giving her hints of what awaited her.

"We don't have to move them. We'll just throw blankets on them." Hotch had begun edging them towards the stairs.

"Doesn't this seem a little desperate to you?" She giggled as he hoisted her up in his arms, preparing to move quickly once he secured her agreement.

"I am desperate." He whined. "I can't take another cold shower, Jay. I swear, I've had a hard on since the last time we were interrupted."

She motioned for him to release her. "Then you should probably put some blankets on the boys so we can fix that." She giggled again as he raced up the stairs and back again holding two pillows and blankets. She sobered as she watched him gently tuck in first Jack and then Henry kissing each boy tenderly on the forehead before coming back to where she stood. "You are absolutely adorable." She cupped his cheek gently as she leaned in and placed a soft kiss on his lips.

"You don't need to flatter me I have every intention of sleeping with you." Hotch teased.

"Oh honey, I hope you you're rested because you're not going to be getting any sleep tonight." She shot up on her toes and crashed her mouth against his. "Take me to bed, Aaron."

"You don't need to ask me twice." He bent and swung her up in his arms. "Are you hearing the halleluiah of angels, too?"

JJ however had moved on and was already too busy fretting her lack of preparedness for the occasion. She hadn't planned for a sleepover. "My bra and panties don't match." She complained before they even got to the bedroom. She remembered the effort that she had extended on her last failed attempt and felt a bit guilty now. He had been so appreciative of her previous attire.

He sat her down just inside the room. "I promise not to pay any attention." He closed the door behind them and reached for her. "In fact, let's just get them off and just forget about them altogether." His hands lifted her tee shirt over her head. He couldn't help but notice the delicate purple bra that so beautifully supported her breasts.

"You're noticing." JJ argued, detecting his preoccupation with the lingerie.

"I am." He agreed. "I'm sorry, it's pretty." He shrugged as his hands covered the article in question. "And it's doing such a wonderful job." His thumbs moved over her distended nipples. "Christ, I wish I was this bra." He bent and paid homage to each breast before reaching for her jeans. The black lace panties he found were also met with approval.

"You are way too overdressed." JJ commented, seeing as how she was down to her undergarments and he was still fully dressed. She set to correct that as she pulled his tee off of his body.

"Would it be inappropriate to ask you to hurry?" He joked as he relieved her of her bra, both still worried that they would be interrupted yet again.

"Your old girlfriend isn't hiding in the closet is she?" JJ asked as she reached for the button on his jeans.

"No," Hotch joked as he slid the panties from her body, "She knew you were serious when you turned down the threesome offer. She promised to let us do this on our own."

Even though she had been the one to bring it up she growled. "Too soon, Aaron."

"Sorry." He dropped a kiss on the top of her head. "Nervous chatter, I feel like a virgin again. Please don't judge me on my introductory performance, I promise I get better with practice." He groaned as her hand made contact with him. "It may take a lot of practice, especially if I get off to a false start." He gently removed her hand.

Oddly his nervous chatter had a calming effect on her. The man was far too endearing. "Sssh. Do you hear that?" JJ asked. The look of pure panic on his face would have been priceless if JJ hadn't just felt the same sense of urgency. "Relax. It's quiet." She smiled tenderly at him. "It's just the two of us." She placed a soft kiss on his collarbone. "No more interruptions."

The sound of two small boys playing brought JJ out of her bliss induced sleep. She quickly slipped on Hotch's tee shirt and found a pair of clean boxers. Take that Beth, she thought smugly as she slipped from the bedroom.

"JJ!" Jack's eyes took in her appearance carefully. "Did you sleep here?" He questioned.

"Yes, Jack, I did." She answered honestly as she sat down on the couch near where they were playing.

The little boy's eyes widened with surprise. "Did you sleep with my daddy?"

Wow. That one she hadn't been expecting, but again she went with honesty. She also noticed that Henry was now silently paying attention. "Yes, I did." She held her breath not quite sure how he was going to react.

"I don't like to sleep with daddy, he's a bed hog." He looked at JJ thoughtfully. "Do you like to sleep him?"

Did she ever! She gave the boy a sweet smile. "You know what Jack? I really did." She smiled wistfully remembering the feeling of complete joy she felt in his arms. "Your dad is a really good snuggler." She was beginning to wish that she'd woken Hotch up and had him make an appearance with her, maybe it would have saved her all these questions.

"Better than my daddy?" Henry asked, startling her.

Seriously, what was with the questions this morning? She smiled over at her son and attempted diplomacy. "Mommy doesn't snuggle with your daddy anymore." She wasn't quite sure how to answer his innocent question.

He seemed to accept that answer at first but then he wanted to know, "Why?" He looked puzzled for a minute. "Is it because you love Hotch?"

That question had Jack perking up considerably. "You love my daddy?" He asked excitedly.

JJ looked at the two bright faces and wondered how they'd managed to get on this topic and why she hadn't just stayed in bed. "Yes, I do love your daddy, Jack."

The answer apparently pleased him as his face lit up in awe before asking her. "Does my daddy love you?"

His excitement was contagious as Henry piped up, "Does he mommy? Does Hotch love you?"

JJ was honestly a little confused by their elation but nonetheless happy to respond that yes, Aaron did love her too. They were in love, it was a good thing.

At that point Henry and Jack's excitement became really loud as they cheered excitedly.

JJ laughed at the two boys before asking what they got into for breakfast to make them so giddy.

"We're just so excited JJ." Jack replied. "How soon before we get a baby?"

"A baby?" JJ froze looking at the smiling faces in front of her. There was no way they used snuggling as a euphemism. Her mind raced as she thought back over their conversation trying to figure out how they'd come to the conclusion that they had.

"Yeah mommy, Miss Emily and Mr. Derek love each other and Mr. Derek gave Miss Emily his love and now there is a baby in Miss Emily's tummy." Henry walked over and pressed his hand against his mother's flat stomach. "I don't think there's nothing in there."

"Huh." She was stunned by their comprehension. Honestly their conclusion made perfect sense. She was going to have to kill Emily.

"Gee, that's a tough one." JJ turned and saw Hotch leaning up against the wall watching the scene play out in barely contained glee. He looked smug. "Do you have something you want to share with me, honey?"

"Daddy!" "Hotch!"

JJ watched as the two small boys launched themselves at the man she'd launched herself at several times the previous evening.

"Hey guys. Are you hungry?" He lifted them both with ease and made his way over to her as she stood up. "Good morning." He leaned forward and pressed a quick kiss against her mouth. "I missed you when I woke up. I was sorry to find you gone."

"Daddy," Jack hit his father's cheek to get his attention. "JJ is going to have a baby because you love each other." Jack commented, while Henry nodded enthusiastically.

"I hate to break it to you guys but I think Miss Emily forgot to tell you about the fairy dust." JJ grinned as the two boys regarded Hotch skeptically. "JJ and I do love one another but we don't have any fairy dust and that's what makes a baby."

"Oh I can't wait to hear Dave comment on your fairy dust." They shared a grin.

"But you can get some can't you daddy?" Jack asked disappointedly, the idea of a baby had already grabbed hold.

"Yeah, can't you, Hotch?" Henry asked over a protruding bottom lip.

"Me and Henry want a baby sister." Jack announced, sending JJ on a coughing spree.

"And you were worried they would never get along." He sat the boys down on stools in the kitchen. "What brought this up guys?" He turned and got each out a glass and poured them both a cup of milk.

"Henry explained to me how Miss Emily got her baby just this morning." Jack took a sip of his milk. "Don't you think a baby would be neat daddy?"

JJ watched as Hotch cracked two eggs into a bowl and scrambled them all the while appearing to be pondering Jack's question. "Maybe someday, Jack." He looked directly at her as he responded. Her heart literally fluttered as she pictured a blonde haired little girl with Aaron's dark eyes.

"Is that okay, mommy? Can we have a baby someday?" She knew that his definition of someday was a definite, not a mere possibility. If she told her son that someday she would have a baby, he'd be expecting it to happen.

JJ snapped out of her day dream to see three curious sets of eyes studying her. She surprised all of them, herself included, by announcing. "I think I might like that." She squealed as Hotch suddenly grabbed her and kissed her deeply to a chorus of "yuck!" from two jubilant boys. They definitely made progress much faster than JJ ever expected.

"Get used to it boys, there is going to be a lot of that happening around here." Hotch laughed, pulling JJ to him once again.

"Why, is there fairy dust in kissing?" Henry wondered aloud.

The question had both of them laughing. "That's how it starts, my boy." Hotch responded, dropping a kiss on both his and Jack's head before going back to making them breakfast. He smiled as he watched JJ walk over and mimic his actions, kissing first Henry, then Jack. His heart soared as he watched his son hug and kiss the woman that so completely captured his heart.

**Thanks for reading! Next chapter is going to be more JJ/Emily. I tend to favor JJ and Hotch just because they are my favorite ship, but I really want to get back to focusing on the JJ/Emily friendship. Thank you for all the reviews and follows. Hopefully you're all still with me and still enjoying the ride.**


	16. Chapter 16

**London Calling Chapter 16 **

**Disclaimer: Not Mine**

"Hey." Emily looked up from the table as a frazzled JJ made her way over.

"Sorry, I'm late. I had to drop off Henry at Will's." She flopped down in the chair she'd finally reached and smiled.

"So, you look happy." It had been several days since they'd last seen one another. They'd texted one another but that was it. They were meeting for dinner to catch up.

JJ smiled serenely. "I am happy."

"So?" Emily prompted.

"So?" JJ responded.

"Ah come on! I'm dying here. I'm freaking six months pregnant and planning a wedding in two weeks, throw me a bone." She growled.

"I'm not sure what it is you want here Em?" JJ slyly replied.

"I want to know how it went the other night with you and Hotch." One of the reasons they had not met up before now was the fact that Derek and Hotch had been in town. They were currently on the west coast hunting down a sociopath.

"It went." JJ blushed, as she took a sip of water.

Emily narrowed her eyes. "Yeah, I'm going to need more than an 'it went'."

"I'm not going to give you a play by play." JJ laughed. "I'm not sure why you'd need it. You can see that I'm obviously happy, we're together, what more do you want?"

"Oh, it was bad wasn't it?" She wrinkled her nose, feeling badly for her friend.

"No!"

"Of course you'd say no." Emily said sympathetically. "I guess we should have expected as much, I mean, it is Hotch."

JJ raised a brow. "What the heck is that supposed to mean?"

"Well, it's not like you were sleeping with Derek." She shrugged. "I imagine it was all perfectly nice but no fireworks or anything."

"Screw you," JJ defended. "It wasn't _nice_, it was incredible."

Emily scoffed, not really believing JJ's assessment. "I'm not trying to piss you off Jay, I'm just saying we should have known not to expect so much. Hotch is a pretty staid guy. He probably doesn't like to get messy."

"It was incredible and he is not staid!" JJ hissed.

"Well he's not exactly sex on a stick." Emily remarked, implying that Derek Morgan was.

"Are you kidding? He's gorgeous. Half the women in Quantico want to sleep with him!"

"Please, I'll give you he's attractive but I doubt all that many women on base want to sleep with him, now if you said they wanted to sleep with Derek…."

"Are you kidding? Half the women on base have slept with Derek! But only once which leads me to believe he's probably like cotton candy – all fluff, little content. Once is more than enough."

"Hey!" She responded, indignantly, before pausing for a moment, "Do you really think he's slept with that many women?" Not giving JJ a chance to answer she reached across the table and squeezed her hand. "I'm glad we're doing this, I really missed you."

"Me too, I'm starved, where's our waiter?" JJ asked looking around the restaurant.

"I think we may have scared him off." She giggled. "So?" She started again.

JJ rolled her eyes. "Fine. Aaron Hotchner is a sex god. There, are you happy?"

"Seriously?" Emily asked doubtfully. "You think I'm going to buy that?"

"Seriously." JJ confirmed. "You have no idea what's under that suit." The ringing of her phone had her groaning. Her lip curled as she looked at the caller id. "Crap it's Will. I hope nothing is wrong with Henry. Hello?" She listened as Will went off on a rant. "What?! No, I'm not pregnant." She almost laughed out loud as Emily's eyes bulged. "Yes, we did spend the night at Aaron's. Oh for the love of God, Will, there were two young boys present, it's not like we had a freaking orgy. Yes, I did say that maybe I wanted more kids. Seriously, do you think we could have this conversation in person and could you maybe consider your getting your information from a three year old boy? Fine. Fine." She hung up the phone with a huff. "Well, that went well." She looked over at her slack jawed friend. "Thank you, by the way."

"Me?" Emily squeaked.

"I believe you were the one that explained to my son where babies came from." She craned her head. "Where is that waiter? Now I need a real drink."

"Drinking's not good for babies." She smirked. "Why exactly did Will think you were pregnant?"

"Because Jack asked me a bunch of questions, including did I love his dad…."

"You already told him you loved him? That was fast. Who said it first?"

Ignoring her JJ continued, "To which I answered yes, I do love Aaron. Then he asked me if Aaron loved me, again to which I answered yes, not knowing that when you are in love and give it to one another you get a baby in your tummy." She glared at Emily. "Henry checks my stomach every day."

"Oh that is adorable." She frowned a bit. "I miss that little scamp."

"Yeah, we can talk about arranging a supervised visit."

"So you and _Aaron_ are in love." She grinned. "Does _Aaron_ want more kids, too?"

"I think we both are considering the possibility." JJ answered honestly.

"Aren't you worried that you're moving too fast?"

"Not even a little. You're freaking out, aren't you?" JJ asked.

"I thought you were going to allow me to continue to ignore that." She grinned as she looked past JJ. "Oh, look here's the waiter."

A young man sheepishly approached the table. He'd apparently heard their earlier conversation as he couldn't quite make eye contact with them as he took down their order.

"Well, we've obviously scandalized the wait staff." JJ snorted as the youngster walked away.

"He's probably not believing that whole sex god thing either and is too embarrassed to meet your eye." Emily quipped.

"So, when is Mama Morgan hitting town?" JJ asked, ignoring the jab.

"She's coming in next weekend. She'll be here for the whole week. She wants to go baby shopping and meet my mom."

"Your mom is aware you're getting married, right?"

"Of course, I told you that Derek asked for my hand," she snorted, "pretty cute, huh? He's very chivalrous."

"Yes, I thought as much when you told me about the screaming orgasm." JJ scoffed. "Does your mom know you're getting married in two weeks?" She specified.

"See, I share details with you, why can't you do the same?" She was thoughtful for a moment. "Crap, I think I told her."

"I'm not sure what I can say that sex god doesn't cover? The man is great in bed. Seriously, joke all you want, all he has to do is look at me to get me wet."

"Oh god."

They both turned in time to see the waiter returning with their drinks. He was bright red, having just overheard JJ's comment, meeting her glance he quickly dropped his eyes, stumbled and their drinks went flying.

"Maybe we shouldn't talk about this in public?" Emily laughed.

"Probably not, I'm going to end up horny and the only one that can help me with that problem is far away."

"Seriously?" Emily's look of disbelief said it all.

"Hey, I don't think Derek Morgan is exactly sex on a stick."

"I wasn't even going to respond to your ridiculous cotton candy analogy."

"We can agree to disagree."

"And then we were asked to leave." JJ huffed. "Can you believe that?"

"I'm still struggling with the fact you talk to Prentiss about our sex life."

"I didn't give her specifics." She giggled, "It's not like I gave up your moves."

"Thank you?" Hotch responded, dryly.

"You're not mad, are you?" JJ worried. "It was just girl talk. We tend to get carried away."

"Enough to get asked to leave at Red Robin."

"Eh, I didn't want a burger any way." She was curled up in her bed talking to him. He was currently at his hotel for the evening. "Family friendly restaurant, my ass." She sighed. "You didn't answer my question, you're not mad are you?"

"Huh?" He was obviously distracted but whether it was the case he was working on or the fact that she was so open with Emily she wasn't sure. "Oh, no, sorry."

"Do you have time for the rest of my story?"

"There's more? Does this involve you getting kicked out of any more places?" He teased.

"Ha! No." She paused dramatically. "Will called just as I got to the restaurant. Henry told him that we slept over and I was having a baby."

His next comment convinced her that he really wasn't paying attention to her. "That's nice."

"Yeah, well he wanted to know if there was a chance the baby was his."

Her comment was met with complete silence. Then a mumbled 'son of a bitch'. "JJ, honey, I've got to go. I just discovered something we overlooked. It's the break that we were looking for."

She knew him well enough that she should have realized that he was pouring over files as he spoke to her. "Okay. Call me when you get a chance, okay?"

"Alright. I love you."

"I love you, too." She barely repeated the phrase before the phone went dead.

"And I really wanted a burger. We're never going to Red Robin again." Emily complained as she shared the events of her day with Derek.

"Maybe you and JJ shouldn't be talking about sex in a place where families go out to eat." Derek suggested.

"I think the prude was just jealous. Her husband didn't look like a sex god or sex on a stick." She growled, recalling the patron who had complained to management about the conversation she'd shamelessly eavesdropped on.

"How come Hotch gets to be a sex god and I'm only sex on a stick?"

"JJ obviously embellishes." She mocked. "I mean come on, Hotch?"

"I don't know he is a good looking dude." He replied. "You know what they say, still waters run deep."

She laughed. "Should I be worried?"

"Nah, he doesn't do it for me." He sighed, suddenly serious. "I hate being all the way across the country. I keep worrying that you're going to need me and I'm not going to be there."

"Please tell me we're not going to turn into _that_ couple."

He sighed heavily. "I've been reading a book and there are a lot of things that can go wrong."

"Derek, we were just at the doctor's last week. I'm fine, the baby is fine."

"I'd feel better if you stayed with JJ when I was on travel." He argued stubbornly.

Exasperated Emily shouted. "I just moved out of JJ's!"

"You could get her to tell you why Hotch is a sex god." He cajoled.

"I'm not going back to JJ's." She stated. "This is going to be our life Derek. I can't move over to JJ's every time you travel. We're living our lives. How would you feel if I told you to make sure you partner with Hotch every case because he's the best shot?"

"Just until the baby is five?" He pleaded.

"Derek."

"Fine." He groaned, as he heard a knock at the door. "Shit, Hotch is here, it looks like there's a break in the case. I got to go, babe."

"Okay. Be safe." She paused then hurriedly added, "Make sure you partner with Hotch. I love you."

He chuckled. "I love you, too."

JJ looked down at the phone she was still holding. At a loss for anything better to do she hit the speed dial.

"Hey." Emily dejectedly answered the phone that she just disconnected.

"Hey." JJ responded in much the same tone. "What are you doing?"

"Nothing. What are you doing?"

"Nothing." JJ sighed. "Hotch just blew me off."

"No he didn't," Emily placated, "They got a break in the case. I just hung up with Derek."

"Whatever." JJ sighed again, sadly. "I didn't even get to ask him what he was wearing."

Ever the friend, Emily asked, "Do you want to know what I'm wearing?"

"Nah, it's not the same. Besides I saw you a little while ago, I know what you're wearing."

"You don't know that, I could have changed since you saw me." She countered.

JJ smiled. "You're just saying that to make me feel better."

"So, how's Hotch?"

"He was distracted." She pouted.

"I hate to say this, but you know how he gets when he's working. He tends to get tunnel vision."

"Yeah, I know." She looked around her empty room. "How's Derek?"

"He wants to wrap me in bubble wrap."

"Is that some kind of new kinky thing?"

"No it's commentary on the fact that even though I could probably kick his ass or at least put up a good fight he seems to think that I shouldn't be alone."

"He just doesn't like the fact he's not with you. Did he suggest that you come over?" She snickered.

"Just until the baby turns five." Emily told her wryly.

"I made a wise ass comment about Will and Hotch didn't even respond." JJ told her, still bummed by the fact.

"So he's back to Hotch now, ouch."

"You're really not good at this emotional support stuff." JJ grumbled. "You're supposed to say something encouraging like, 'that jerk'. Or something to that affect."

"Do you want me to try again?"

"Not if you're just trying to placate me."

Emily chuckled. "Jesus. When did we become so pathetic?"

"I think it happened right about the time we got kicked out of Red Robin." JJ snorted.

"I'm sure you're right." Emily agreed. "I think I'm going to go eat an apple and pretend it's a snickers bar."

"Okay. I'll talk to you tomorrow." JJ laughed. She was just about to set her phone down when it vibrated alerting her that she had a new text message. She flipped it open and smiled widely.

*I heard and chose to ignore your smart assed comment – not funny. I love you.

**Thanks for reading!**


	17. Chapter 17

**London Calling Chapter 17**

**Disclaimer: Not Mine**

**A/N – Latest chapter. I think that I have maybe two more and then an epilogue and this will be finished. **

Emily and JJ had only been in the BAU for a couple of minutes when Erin Strauss appeared. "Hello ladies. I assume you're awaiting the team's return from California?" She smiled at them pleasantly.

"Yes ma'am. We are." Emily confirmed, checking her watch once more. She was anxious for Derek's return.

This being the first time she had seen Emily since she left the BAU Strauss continued. "I understand congratulations are in order Emily, you have quite a few big changes coming your way."

"Don't remind her," JJ warned. "She's worried that Derek isn't going to make it on time to pick up his mom this evening and she'll have to do it alone."

"Oh he'll be here." Strauss assured the brunette. "I just had a text from Dave." She blushed slightly at that confidence. "Agent Jareau, I was wondering if I could have a word with you while we wait."

"Ma'am?" JJ looked at her in confusion.

"I have an opportunity that I would like to discuss with you." JJ, still not having any clear direction in what it was she wanted to do now that she was no longer affiliated with the BAU, nodded with interest. "Okay."

"Why don't you have a seat, Emily? I know that you no longer work here but you'll always be considered part of the BAU family. Especially now that you're carrying a next generation BAU member." She grinned. "I'd love to hear how the Ambassador took the news."

"You'll see her at the wedding." Emily laughed. "She'll be the one wearing a 'future grandma' brooch." She shook her head. "I'm actually afraid of what is going to happen when she meets Derek's mom."

"That's wonderful." The smile on her face supported her statement. "We'll just be a minute, I'm sure JJ is wondering what I have to say."

She wasn't the only one Emily thought as she watched them walk back to Strauss's office. She felt a slight ping that JJ's future was so undecided when she was the one that put it all in action, but then she knew that her friend had found true happiness in her personal life and that more than made up for it. She wandered over to Derek's desk and made herself at home.

She grinned at the framed sonogram of 'Baby Morgan'. He was such a goof. God she missed him. They had caught a break in the case early, but unfortunately the unsub was a member of law enforcement and had managed to get wind of it and give them the slip. It took them five long days to hunt him down.

She glanced at her watch again, twenty minutes had elapsed since JJ had gone to Strauss's office and she still hadn't returned. She stood to stretch just as the elevator pinged open.

"There's my baby mama." She rolled her eyes as Derek Morgan, larger than life, strolled out of the elevator, made his way over to her, dropped his go bag and pulled her into his arms. "You are a sight for sore eyes, Princess. Kiss me like you mean it." He demanded.

She wasn't sure whether to laugh or growl at him so she did neither. She kissed him like she meant it.

The rest of the team offered catcalls and various comments while they went to their respective offices or cubes to finalize their paperwork so they could get out of there. Emily slowly ended the kiss and smiled up at him. "Hi. I missed you."

"I kind of got that." He chuckled as he bent for another quick peck. "I missed you too."

"I'm a little nervous." She told him quickly, slightly panicked at the thought of picking his mother up.

"Baby, you have nothing to worry about. My mom is going to love you. She already loves you. You're giving her a grandbaby." He placed a kiss on her forehead. "Speaking of that," he stepped back slightly and bent down, "How is daddy's little princess?" He dropped a kiss on her stomach.

"A GIRL! OH MY GOD! YOU'RE HAVING A GIRL!" Penelope squealed loud enough to turn several heads and bring Rossi out of his office.

"I thought we weren't telling anyone until we told your mom?" Emily said with a smirk.

"It slipped." Derek winced.

"Bet that's not the first time he's said that." Rossi joked.

"Don't be vulgar, David." Strauss intoned, behind him. "Congratulations again, Emily. You too, Derek."

"Do you hear that sound?" Rossi asked, as he cupped a hand to his ear. "That's the sound of father's everywhere rejoicing in the irony of Derek Morgan becoming a father to a baby girl." He laughed out loud causing several others to chuckle with him.

"I wasn't that bad." Derek argued.

"Oh where is JJ when you need her, I'm sure she could come up with some zingers."

"She's here, she's meeting with…" Emily looked at Strauss. "Hey, where did JJ disappear to?"

"I believe she is welcoming Agent Hotchner home." She responded, smiling when all of their heads swiveled to the office in question.

Hotch had been disappointed to have arrived back in the office and find Emily alone. He thought for sure JJ would be there as well. He smiled as Derek sauntered over to Emily and kissed her. Not feeling like sticking around he quickly made his escape to his office. The sooner he put his report to bed he could find his own. Or JJ's. He didn't care which, as long as she was in it. With that in mind he powered up his laptop and dropped into his office chair.

"Well, hello, tall, dark and delicious. Did you miss me?"

Hotch looked up in time to see JJ enter his office. He stood without saying a word and pulled her into his arms. He hadn't realized until he actually saw her standing there how horribly he had missed her. The crappy case pushed from his memory as his tongue tangled with hers.

"You did miss me." She sighed, when air became necessary.

"I wasn't done saying hello." He commented, as he captured her mouth once again greedily.

"Damn." Morgan whistled. No one thought it out of character for him to lay one on Emily when he'd strolled in the office but for Hotch to be smacking on JJ like he was in view of the whole office?

"Wow." Penelope used a file folder to fan herself. "The smoke detector is going to go off."

"Maybe someone should tell them they're visible?" Reid suggested.

"Do you think she'd get pissed if I put this on YouTube?" Emily wondered. "Oh my, Hotch totally just copped a feel." She looked over at Derek. "He does have moves. No wonder she calls him a sex god."

The heads that were focused on Hotch's office all swiveled back to Emily whose eyes were now wide with shock at what she just uttered.

"Baby, you've got to start thinking before you speak."

"Aaron Hotchner is a sex god?" Penelope snorted in disbelief.

"No, no, no." Derek growled, turning back to make sure that Hotch and JJ were still occupied. "That was just a joke between Emily and JJ that Emily was never supposed to talk about in mixed company."

His comment did nothing but egg Garcia on. "Oh my gosh, girl talk, so JJ totally said that he was." She glanced back at the office. The pair had broken apart at the mouth but they were still holding one another tightly. "Boss man is good in the sack, huh?" She asked Emily.

"I really don't think this is a topic for the office, Miss Garcia." Strauss observed; the corners of her mouth were kicked up in a smile she was fighting.

"Obviously they are sexually compatible." Reid pointed out. "They are both reluctant to separate and continue to touch one another intimately." They all watched as JJ brushed a lock of Hotch's hair that had fallen forward back.

"I hope they can manage to behave professionally when the situation dictates." Strauss stated dryly.

"She accepted the job?" Dave asked.

"What job?" The rest of the team insisted on knowing.

"Agent Jareau has agreed to work for me as our liaison with the DOJ. She will also be offering a course for all agents on the proper way of dealing with the press in various situations." She turned to Penelope. "I believe the office she used previously is still available?"

"She's coming back here!" Garcia clapped. "Oh, I've got to go and find her nameplate, where did I put that?"

In Hotch's office he continued to shower affection on JJ, oblivious to the rest of the team and their various observations. "You keep that up and I'm going to get fired before I even have a chance to come back here." JJ moaned, as his hands continued to roam over her body.

"What?" Her words snapped him out of his lusty haze. He was surprised that he was as revved up as he was considering where they were.

"Erin Strauss offered me a position."

"I was about ready to offer you one myself." He chuckled.

"This one comes with a paycheck." She giggled and then looked at him sharply. "Don't you dare offer to pay me."

He smirked at her and led them to the couch in his office. "Okay, tell me what it is you'd be doing." He listened as she outlined everything she and Strauss discussed. "Would you travel?"

"If there was a high profile case they might require me to travel. But there wouldn't be near as much travel as there was when I was a full member of the BAU."

"So, what do you think?" He asked, curious to find out what her decision was.

"What do you think?" She volleyed back, wanting his thoughts on the matter.

He thought it was perfect but he didn't want to influence her to take something less than she wanted. "I think it's your decision."

"You don't have an opinion?" She asked, disappointedly. Will had always been very vocal about what it was she should be doing. She didn't always like that fact but at lease he expressed his opinion.

"I do, but I don't want mine to influence yours." His thumb caressed the hand he was holding. "I want you to do what you want to do. Whatever makes you happy; I'll support whatever you decide."

His words were a balm to her soul. "No wonder I love you." She leaned forward and kissed him again. "Hurry up and finish your report so I can take you home and show you how much."

He leaned forward and nipped her lips. "Are you going to tell me what you're going to do?"

She smiled wide. "I'm coming back to the BAU." He felt the weight life off his shoulders as she made the statement. "It's a perfect opportunity. I get to use my degree, I get to work around you, and I get to tell everyone what to do in regards to dealing with the press." She reached out and grabbed his tie, "You, Sweet face, are going to get private tutoring." She pressed a kiss on him again. "And I'll get to go home almost every night. Sure there will be times when I have to travel, but that's okay."

"You don't want to travel?" He knew that had been a cause of a lot of the strife between her and Will.

"The one thing I found I like during my tenure with Interpol was the fact that I could spend time with Henry daily." JJ shrugged. "He's starting preschool and he needs me around more, before I argued that we could work around it and we probably could, but the fact is, I don't want to anymore. I want to be there for him." She looked up at him through her lashes. "I'd also like to be there for Jack, too, maybe if Jessica needs a hand."

He leaned in and touched his lips to hers. "No wonder I love you." Hotch told her, repeating her earlier words. "Screw the report, I'll do it tomorrow, I'm ready to go and see the boys."

"No!" JJ responded, horrified. "I promised Strauss that we could be professional."

He raised a brow. "We are professional."

"Not if your first response is 'I'll do it tomorrow'. We have to behave normally." She inched away from him. "Go, finish your work." She shooed him away.

Shaking his head he made his way back to his desk. "When do you officially start?"

"Monday." She smiled as he grabbed hold of the file he was working on when she walked in.

"Fine." He looked over at her. "I'm going to need you to close the shades and shut the door. When I'm done with this damn report I have every intention of nailing you on my couch." He watched as her eyes heated and she licked her lips. "Maybe my desk."

"Definitely your desk." She breathed out. "Do you know that during one of my evaluations I fantasized about you laying me down on your desk and kissing your way up my body?" She grinned at him. "You asked me if I was okay, because I was flushed."

"I knew it! I knew you were thinking about sex. You kept looking at my mouth and biting your lips and your nipples were rock hard."

She felt them tighten as he stared at them now. "How very ungentlemanly of you to notice."

"It wasn't the only thing rock hard in the room." He looked at her chest again. "Then or now."

"Is that right?" She reached behind her and dropped the shades covering one window, with a flick of the wrist you couldn't see in or out of the office.

"Hey, so I did something really stupid but to make up for it I'm going to prevent you two from having sex in Hotch's office in front of the rest of the team." Emily announced loudly, stepping into the office. She looked at the two of them. "Jeez, I kind of feel like I'm walking into a porno. I'm half surprised JJ isn't spread out in front of you on the desk."

"I might have been if you wouldn't have interrupted." JJ grumbled under her breath as Hotch turned a scary shade of red.

"Riiiight. Okay then. We're going to go for drinks if you want to join us?" She smiled winningly, then hurriedly added, "Oh, and I might have announced that you referred to Hotch as a sex god in front of everyone." She grimaced as Hotch went redder still and dropped his head into his hands. JJ groaned, already imagining the teasing they would both be subjected to. "Don't be embarrassed, Hotch, JJ's like ten years younger than you and in really good shape, her saying that you do it for her is a huge endorsement, you're kind of hero like."

"Emily, shut up." JJ growled.

"I'm sorry, you two were up here putting on a show and really the air around you is palpable and it just slipped out." She sighed, "I admit, I didn't see it before but seeing you together? I think you look beautiful. Sensual, electric. Hot." She rubbed a hand over her stomach. "You're going to make gorgeous babies."

"Emily!" JJ said in a strangled voice. "SHUT UP!"

Continuing to ignore her Emily smiled softly over at Hotch. "JJ really loves you, you know…"

"You're lucky I love you, you hormonal nut." JJ growled. "You're embarrassing him. Of course he knows I love him."

"I just wanted to warn him to treat you good or he'd answer to me but the way he looks at you makes me think a warning really isn't necessary." She sniffled. "It's really sweet."

"Em." Derek stepped in and put his hand on her shoulder. "Baby, let's go get you a snack, your blood sugar is all over the place and you are just rambling." He shook his head. "Seriously though, ya'll might want to close the rest of those blinds."

Emily could be heard as they walked away. "Man, I am hungry. Can we get some fries?"

JJ was relieved when Hotch let out a chuckle. "Well, I guess we're not going to have sex on your couch now." She stated. She watched as he reclosed the file and put it in his briefcase. He stood from the desk and held his hand out to her.

"No, but every surface in both of our homes is fair game. And we are leaving now."

His tone brooked no room for argument, but who was she to even think about arguing with that? She slipped her hand into his and winked over at him. "You do have a home office."

**Thanks for reading… I appreciate all the reviews and follows. Thank you so much!**


	18. Chapter 18

**London Calling Chapter 18**

**Disclaimer: Not Mine**

**A/N – this is a little long – I had initially ended it after the elevator scene but my beta was disappointed so I headed back to the shower… This is for you Jen. **

JJ smiled as she looked over at Emily taking measured breaths. "Are you nervous?"

Emily, not realizing what she'd been doing, abruptly stopped. "What, no."

"I'd be nervous." JJ told her. "I mean it is Pen we're talking about."

Emily let out a rush of air. "Crap. She got a stripper, didn't she? I don't want some strange guy gyrating around me and putting his junk in my face."

"Right, that's Derek job." JJ snorted.

"Shut up." Emily laughed. "I'm trying to be serious here. Nor do I want someone bumping and grinding on my mother or Derek's mother." She shivered at the mental picture and again questioned her ready acceptance of allowing Penelope to throw her a bachelorette party.

JJ just shook her head. "You worry too much. I'm sure this is going to be a tasteful…" She broke off when the caterer passed by carrying a cake that resembled an erect penis.

"Please tell me that was a rocket ship."

"If it's chocolate I'm going to guess that is USS Morgan." JJ quipped. "I'm going to guess that's not an exact replica but who knows? This is Pen so it's possible she had the baker working from a picture." She turned to Emily. "Does he manscape?"

"You are being very little help."

"If it helps I've managed to convince myself that I do not want any cake tonight."

"Are you kidding me? That is chocolate decadence filled with dark chocolate mousse. It is absolutely delish." Penelope announced, having only heard JJ's last comment.

"Is it shaped like…?"

"A big honking penis? You bet it is!" Penelope grinned. "This is a party!"

"And nothing says party like big honking penis." JJ intoned, earning her a glare from Emily and an 'exactly' from Pen.

"Hey, uh, Pen, you're not having any exotic dancers are you?" Emily asked.

"Oh, baby doll, I am not giving you any clues. Just relax and enjoy the party, okay?" She smiled and excused herself to go check on the entertainment.

"I probably should have just eloped." Emily whined.

"Bite your tongue!" Her mother exclaimed having just come over to say hello. "I would have been so disappointed. I know that Fran would feel the same way." She looked around the room. "And you would have missed all of this. That Penelope Garcia is something else." She giggled and dropped her voice to a whisper. "Did you see the cake?"

Emily groaned, "God, I wish I could have gone with Derek to Hotch's. They're probably sitting around playing poker and sipping scotch."

JJ looked at her in surprise. "I'm not sure how they could be when Rossi's limo picked them up an hour ago to head downtown." She wished she would have kept that little gem to herself when Emily's eyes narrowed speculatively.

"That is not what Derek said that he would be doing."

JJ shrugged. "Maybe he didn't know." She offered.

"Right. He didn't know that David Rossi was going to plan one last night of debauchery. I find that hard to believe."

"Debauchery?" JJ chuckled. "What is it you think they're going to do exactly?"

"That's the point." Emily huffed. "With Rossi in charge who knows what kind of stupidity they'll get into."

"She does have a point." Erin Strauss commented, having walked up just as Emily was venting.

"Please don't encourage her." JJ pleaded before turning her attention to Emily. "You just need to relax they have Hotch _and_ Reid with them to keep them out of trouble."

"Hey, honey." Hotch's tone had JJ moving out of the crowded room.

"What's wrong?" She asked.

"We ran into a little bit of a problem."

"What kind of a problem, Aaron?"

"One that we'll probably laugh about in a few years but really isn't all that funny now." He forewarned.

"Okay, spill it."

"Reid has been arrested."

Her first thought was he must be joking but she knew that he wouldn't joke about something like that. "What happened?"

"We were at a strip club."

"Uh huh."

"Reid was at the bar chatting with a patron. He thought they were just chatting, she was actually working. He inadvertently asked her how much she made. She was undercover and charged him with solicitation."

JJ let out a sigh. "Why weren't you guys watching him? Or don't I want to know?"

"Rossi bought the groom a lap dance. We were enjoying his discomfort." He sheepishly admitted. "We tried to talk to the arresting officer but she won't let it go, we tried to explain that Reid was purely enquiring on a scientific level, not personal but she's tickled that she has a Federal agent on the hook."

"And the prosecutor?"

"Is a jealous dick that had the misfortune of coming in second to me all through law school." Hotch growled. "He won't listen to reason either. He thinks we're just looking for favoritism."

"Give me their names." She quickly wrote down the information. "Where are you?" She leaned out and gestured for Garcia. "I'm on my way; don't do anything stupid before I get there. I don't want to have to rescue all four of you."

"Where do you think you're going, missy?" Garcia hissed having heard the last part of her conversation.

JJ thrust the pair of names at her. "I need everything you have on the officer and prosecutor that I've just handed you. Reid asked the wrong person a stupid question and she thinks she's got a big catch."

"Oh no."

"Exactly." JJ responded. "And I need you to make sure that Em doesn't find out what's going on."

"What am I supposed to tell her?" Garcia whined, "You know that I fold under pressure and you know that she can weasel just about anything out of me."

"Stay strong, Pen." JJ squeezed her arm as she fled the party.

He was waiting for her as she pulled into the precinct.

"Are you okay?" She asked as she stepped from the vehicle.

"Aside from being pissed off?"

"Yeah," She smiled as she reached him, "Aside from that." She leaned up and placed what she hoped was a soothing kiss against his mouth.

"You shouldn't have needed to come down here. This is complete bullshit."

"I'm going to need you to tone that down." JJ reached up and wiped her lipstick from his mouth. "I've got this."

"Officer Jackson thinks this collar is going to escalate her to the next level, she refuses to listen to reason."

"I'm not going to talk to her. I want to talk to the prosecuting attorney." She turned towards the courthouse. Penelope was able to confirm to her that the skunk was still in his office.

"You're going to need…"

"Aaron," JJ interrupted, "I got this." She reiterated. "I need you to trust me to do my job." She watched as he blew out a breath. "Do you trust me?"

"I called you, didn't I?" He grumbled.

She grinned at him. "Yes you did." She put a little swing in her step for his benefit. "I'll have this corrected momentarily Agent Hotchner." She called over her shoulder.

"You might want to wipe your chin." Rossi said, coming up beside him.

"You might want to elevate your eyes. I saw where you were looking."

Rossi chuckled. "You're not going to follow her? Allen is a sleezeball."

"Takes one to know one." Hotch muttered as he watched JJ slip into the building across the way. As the door closed behind her he fell into step. "I'm going to follow her but only because I want to watch her chew him up and spit him out."

"Where are we going?" Morgan asked as he joined the pair. "That douche isn't going to listen to anything we say, Hotch already tried talking to him."

"That's why Aaron called his girlfriend." Rossi intoned.

"JJ's coming?" Derek asked, looking around for any sight of the blonde.

"JJ's here." Rossi advised him. "She is on the way to the lion's den as we speak, which is why we're following her."

"Sweet."

JJ found the office that she was looking for with relative ease. "ADA Allen?"

"Can I help you?" The man replied without bothering to look up.

"You have one of my men currently awaiting arraignment for solicitation."

That got his attention. "You are?"

"My name is Jennifer Jareau. I am the BAU liaison with the DoJ."

"Your man solicited an undercover officer, Agent Jareau."

"Have you spoken to the individual in question?" JJ challenged, knowing for a fact that he had not.

"I don't need to speak to him, I spoke with the officer."

"Dr. Reid did not solicit your officer. He was conducting a conversation and asked a question, there was never any intent behind the question. Had you spent a minute with him you would have realized that, in fact, I am certain that your officer did realize that but felt the prize of collaring an FBI agent outweighed all else."

"I don't like what you're implying Agent Jareau."

"Unless Dr. Reid is released and issued an apology immediately you're not going to like a lot of what I'm going to say."

The man sat back in his chair and tented his fingers. "That's not going to happen."

"Okay. My next call is going to be to the FBI director, he'll be contacting your superior. I'll make sure that he is aware that you never once spoke to Dr. Reid, nor did you even bother to look at his record or reach out to his superiors."

"He was arrested in the presence of his superior."

"Correct, Agent Hotchner, who I believe you have some history with?"

"That is irrelevant." Obviously it wasn't by the flush on his face.

"I sincerely hope so. I would hate to think you let past prejudices cloud your judgment." She didn't give him an opportunity to respond. "I will also be calling into question every arrest that Officer Jackson has made because I think maybe you need to make sure your officer understands the difference between solicitation and entrapment. My technical analyst found that there are four pending suits against the officer in question."

"I…"

JJ didn't give him an opportunity to interrupt. "You should know that there is no such question regarding the character of Dr. Reid. He is above reproach. This is an unfortunate incident that you have the opportunity to correct but that window of opportunity is closing rapidly."

"I just can't arbitrarily release a suspect based on your say so." Allen argued.

"Fine." JJ pulled out her phone. "I'm sure that the Director will be more than happy to provide the sufficient leverage to facilitate the release of Dr. Reid."

"I don't like being blackmailed, Agent Jareau."

"I don't like pissing matches, ADA Allen." JJ calmly replied. "I know from paperwork my TA uncovered that you also question the validity of some of your officers arrests. Had it been anyone other than SSA Hotchner that came to you to seek Dr. Reid's release you would have been more reasonable. I don't like games either and I've lost any patience that I had. Consider my courtesy call at an end." She turned to stride away when he called her back.

"You made your point." He picked up the phone and made a quick call to the precinct ordering Reid's immediate release. He hung the phone up and smiled up at JJ. "I'll be sure to have Officer Jackson follow up with an official apology. In the meantime maybe you and I could go somewhere for a drink, part of my official apology to you."

"Oh, no," She declined, "I think Aaron might have a problem with that." JJ stated.

His irritation was immediate. "I'm not sure why it would be any of his concern who you have a drink with. You don't report to him."

"We have a pretty solid agreement not to date outside our relationship."

"You're dating that tool?" He gave her a once over. "You realize you could do better."

She laughed in his face. "Oh ADA Allen, here I thought we were going to end this episode on good terms and you had to go and insult the man I'm going to marry."

"You and JJ are getting married?" Rossi's voice could be heard in the hallway followed by, "Damn man, you don't waste any time do you?" Derek commented.

"If you'll excuse me," JJ said, turning back to the door, "It appears Larry, Curly and Moe followed me here." She stepped out into the hall to find her audience her eyes focused on the tall one in the middle. "I told you that I was more than capable of mmmphf…" She couldn't say more as his mouth was fused to hers.

"Jeez, he sure is demonstrative all of a sudden." Rossi remarked to Morgan.

"She's a little bit of a fire cracker. I think my boy likes that."

"I think it was the branding that did it. He liked hearing that she wants to marry him."

"It was very romantic." Derek stated. "Much like the impulsive kiss."

"Oh yeah, she liked that."

JJ stepped back, licked her lips and straightened her blouse. "Seriously, you're all a bunch of idiots."

"Honey." Hotch began.

"Don't honey me I'm still mad." JJ huffed, heading towards the elevators.

"She can't be too mad the way she kissed you back." Rossi helpfully pointed out.

"I'm going next door to retrieve Spence then I'm going back to my party where hopefully my absence hasn't been noted." She spun around and glared at Rossi. "I hope that I can trust you to make sure these two make it home safe and sound."

"Well I sure wouldn't want to piss you off any more than you already are." He grinned. "It's because you're embarrassed, you didn't expect that Aaron would overhear your little comment about the man you're going to marry." His smile widened when she blushed. "Oh Bella, you have to know how happy that made him. Poor schmuck."

"I'm not embarrassed. I'm angry." She mumbled unconvincingly. "You followed me when I clearly stated that I had it under control. I know how to do my job." She stepped into the elevator and quickly pressed the down button leveling a glare at Hotch.

Hotch waited half a second and stepped on just as the doors closed. "You know," he stated, studying her closely, "Rossi is right." He moved closer to her. "I am pretty damn happy."

"I didn't know you were in the hallway." She blurted out.

"So you didn't mean it?" They both knew what he was referring to.

"Obviously I've thought about it, but we haven't really talked about it." She stared intently at the floor.

He smiled at her, glad that she admitted that she had thought of marrying him. "I got you to concede that _maybe someday_ you'd have my baby, I figured you already knew me well enough to know that I'd want the whole deal with you."

"We're going a little fast." She said, breathlessly, her heart pounding furiously.

"So what, are you saying you want to slow down?" He fretted, half dreading her response. He was honestly a little nauseous over the fact she wouldn't meet his eyes.

She finally glanced up at him and felt immediately guilty over the worry in his eyes. "I hardly think that's an option." She was biting her lip nervously, a habit he found incredibly endearing. "I am absolutely, madly, in love with you." She was in his arms before the elevator door opened and still ensconced in them when it closed moments later.

"Are you two planning on riding the elevator and necking all night?" Rossi teased, when the elevator opened on the floor where they'd left him and Morgan standing.

"Hey, I don't want to alarm you or anything but Emily is looking for you. Something about gyrating junk and you promising her that you wouldn't abandon her." Morgan warned her as they stepped into the elevator. "She is not happy."

"Wait till I tell her Rossi bought you a lap dance."

The shower was all over by the time JJ made it back, only Emily and Pen were left. JJ found them eating chocolate cake.

"You know that's going to keep Baby Girl Morgan up all night." JJ commented as she snagged a piece for herself.

"Oh look," Emily said to Pen, "It's my best friend, JJ, deciding to make a re-appearance. Was she here when I needed her? When the Village People were all shaking their bits and pieces in my face and dirty dancing with my mother?"

"Please tell me you have this recorded." JJ whispered to Pen. To Emily she questioned. "Village People?"

Emily shuddered. "I don't know; there was a fireman, policeman, maybe a cowboy, and they were all trying to slither up me." She shot JJ a faux angry look. "So, did you get Pretty Boy out of the pokey?"

"You really need to work on your secret keeping abilities, Pen." JJ grumbled, as she took a bite of the cake.

Penelope only shrugged. "Hey, I warned you, I can only do so much. How is boy wonder?"

"He's fine. He was putting on a magic show when we sprung him." She smiled remembering the groans of his fellow detainees. "So," She turned back to Emily. "What kind of loot did you get?"

"Did you know that this was a themed shower?" Emily asked her, suddenly indignant once again.

JJ turned to look at Pen. "It was?"

Garcia shook her head. "No, I swear it was all a coincidence."

"You should have seen the stuff I got – gels, lotions, toys. We're good in that department, we don't need any gimmicks."

"Experimentation never hurt anyone." Penelope offered with a shrug.

"Some of that stuff was questionable." Emily responded.

"Her mother got her the slinkiest little outfit I've ever seen and a pair of plush handcuffs." Penelope shared.

"The ambassador?" JJ snorted. "You did remind her that you and Derek both had your own, right?"

"Sure that was a conversation I want to have with my mom and soon to be mother in law."

"She was rather prudish in front of the 'rents." Penelope confirmed.

"I wasn't being a prude, but seriously, if I were to sew together all the lingerie I got I might have one article of clothing that might cover my ass." Emily noted.

"It's possible you might be missing the point of lingerie." JJ informed her. "Never underestimate the power of a bustier and garter." She sighed, remembering her first attempted seduction. "Oh and don't forget the stilettos." Sure it hadn't exactly gone as planned but Hotch definitely appreciated the effort she took.

"You've got a glazed look there missy." Penelope pointed out. "Where did you leave the boys after you rescued them?"

"I don't know if I'd say she rescued us." Morgan answered, making his way over to Emily.

"Of course she did." Hotch commented as he made his way into the room making a beeline for JJ. "She's the one that convinced Allen to see reason and release Reid."

Morgan snorted. "I still say Allen was more impressed by her assets. He thought he could play nice and make a love connection. Only he got shot down."

"Oh, you got hit on?" Emily asked, all interested.

"Yeah, you weren't the only one that had to deal with slithery men tonight." That comment had Morgan's head swinging around.

"Excuse me?"

"Please, you had a lap dance." Emily shot back.

"JJ!" Derek growled.

"What?" JJ stared back at him. "I didn't say anything."

"Rossi may have sent me a video that I may have shown Emily." Garcia confessed easily. Then, in an attempt to take the heat off of her, she quickly added, "He also may have mentioned that we might be planning another BAU wedding in the near future."

"He's going for number four? Wow. He's going to marry Strauss?" Emily surmised at the same time JJ groaned.

"Seriously, he has a big mouth."

"What am I missing?" Emily asked as all eyes were aimed at JJ. "Oh." She said, disappointed. "You mean you two?"

"What is that supposed to mean?" JJ growled.

"Well, it's not like that's news or anything." Emily pointed out. "I think it's a forgone conclusion that you two will end up married."

Hotch smiled at the insight and shared, "She thought she was the only one that thought that."

"You are so adorable, Peaches." Penelope sighed.

"She is cute, isn't she?" Emily chuckled.

"In all fairness to JJ she has proven marriage resistant in the past. We could be a little surprised." Morgan stated.

"You were surprised." Hotch reminded him of his reaction earlier in the evening.

"I was surprised that you moved so fast, not that it was happening. I've known for months that you were in love with her. In fact, I knew before she knew."

"Well I'm glad you all knew," JJ told them, "That way when Aaron and I show up married one day you won't be surprised."

Penelope gasped. "You'd get married without us?"

"I think I'd like to get married on the beach, with the sun setting." JJ continued, snuggling into Hotch's side, sighing as she pictured the event.

"And where am I?" Pen asked, "Holding your flowers? Crying as the hot sand bakes my tootsies?"

JJ giggled at that image. "Would you really be offended if we just had a small, private ceremony, Pen?"

"Ugh. Yes!"

"As much as I love all of you, I don't want a big to do. I really just want it to be the two of us."

"And the boys." Hotch added, finally speaking up.

"And the boys." JJ agreed, turning to place a light kiss on his lips.

"I think she's serious." Penelope stated, bereft at the thought.

"You know, Pen," JJ stated, "You could always worry about your own wedding."

"I get to plan _that_ shower." Emily announced, looking at Pen intently. "Boy do I have some great ideas for a cake."

**Thanks for reading! Also, thanks for the reviews and follows! **


	19. Chapter 19

**London Calling Chapter 19**

**Disclaimer: Not Mine**

**A/N – Sorry, I meant to have this out on Thursday but have been super busy lately. Hope you all enjoy.**

Emily awoke slowly to the feel of soft kisses and sensuous caresses. "Good morning." She stretched and readjusted to give him better access before coming widely awake. "Hey! You're not supposed to be here, you're not supposed to see me yet."

"Don't worry I'll keep my eyes closed." Derek's promptly replied.

"You're missing the point it's supposed to be bad…" She lost her breath as his hands continued their magic.

"What's that you were saying, Princess?" He chuckled, as she pressed her body close. "You're not going to tell me you believe in those old wives tales?"

Emily settled back into the covers. "Right now the only thing I believe is you better finish what you started."

"Oh, believe me I have every intention of doing just that." He promised, and proceeded to keep his promise.

It was a tangle of naked limbs that JJ walked in on. "Happy Wedding Day! OH GROSS!" She quickly shut the door. "Little warning would have been nice. It could have been Henry that walked in to wake his Em."

"I told you he'd be here." Garcia remarked looking down at the breakfast she'd created for Emily. "Open that door back up," She directed JJ, "There's probably enough for both here."

"Probably more than enough." JJ snorted. "It didn't even look like they worked up an appetite."

"You know we can hear you." Emily stated.

"That's weird because we couldn't hear you at all. No sound, no movement. Do you want me to have Aaron give Derek some wedding night pointers?"

"Ha! Like Hotch could give me pointers in the bedroom." Derek complained, affronted at the suggestion.

"You know, in the immortal words of Logan Echolls, 'If the cuddling is the best part, he didn't do it right.'" JJ shook her head and looked at Pen, "That's a true statement."

"You can come in now." Derek grumbled, then when they opened the door, both of them grinning like fools, he asked. "So are you telling me that you and Hotch don't cuddle?"

JJ tilted her head as if in deep thought. "Oh, we cuddle on the couch. I guess you could call the time after we've reached sheer orgasmic bliss and we're waiting for our breathing to regulate and the ability to move again cuddling." She grinned wickedly and sighed happily. "I usually refer to it as halftime."

Morgan laughed out loud. "I hope you brag about me like this when I'm not in the room." He said to Emily.

"She does, but I'm having doubts. She doesn't even look ravished." JJ pointed out.

"It was only the first quarter and the ref called a time out."

JJ chuckled at the analogy. "You're not so bad, Derek Morgan."

"Going to the chapel and we're going to maarrrried. Going to the chapel and we're.."

JJ looked over at the bubbly blonde, a vision of pink chiffon, and growled. "Seriously Pen, if you do not stop it I'm going to kill you."

"Sorry, I like to sing when I'm nervous. It calms me." The singing stopped but the humming and dancing continued.

"Why are you nervous?" Emily asked. "You're not the one with a missing fiancé." She tapped her foot anxiously. "What's the rule here? We wait fifteen minutes and if he doesn't show we call it a day?"

"Oh please, he's going to show." JJ looked at her phone again, willing it to do something. He was so hyped this morning she wouldn't have been surprised if he'd gone straight from the bedroom to the altar. "Maybe he's in traffic?"

"Without his phone?" No member of the BAU was ever without their phone. Both JJ and Emily turned to Penelope who was fishing her phone out of her cleavage once again attempting to call him.

"It's going straight to voicemail. Maybe he forgot it. Surely people are allowed concessions on their wedding day?" Garcia suggested before frowningly adding, "Maybe he was in an accident?"

Exasperated that she would even suggest it, JJ bit out, "You know what, Pen, that's not helping, maybe you should stick to singing."

Frown turning to pout, she turned to JJ. "I guess it's a good thing you don't want anyone at your wedding. Because apparently weddings make you mean."

"I'm not being mean," JJ defended, "Who's the one that suggested maybe Morgan was in an accident? Because that's going to calm her."

"I didn't say he was hurt or lying somewhere in a ditch did I?" Garcia defended.

"So, what, you think he suffered a paper cut that is preventing him from operating a vehicle or using a cell phone?"

Emily sighed and tried to defuse the situation. "Guys, he's late. He's probably shaving his head or practicing his smile in the mirror, don't worry he'll be here." She was the voice of calm reason.

JJ made a face at Penelope. "He practices his smile in the mirror?" The mere idea had her grinning.

"I've never actually _seen_ him do it but c'mon he's got a couple of different ones that he pulls out at various intervals; I've got to assume he practices them. How else would he know when to use which one?"

Penelope chuckled. "Infallible logic, as usual, no wonder my Chocolate Adonis is so smitten with you." She looked at her watch again. "But seriously, who's late to their own wedding?"

"I know." JJ agreed. "And just like that another fairy tale debunked. Here we thought he rolled out of bed looking that good. Now we know that he has to work at it just like the rest of us mere mortals." She walked over and gave Pen a hug in silent apology.

The sudden knock on the door startled them all. Hotch stuck his head through the door. "Car wouldn't start, didn't charge his phone, locked his keys in the car, couldn't get back into the house, used his FBI credentials to convince a civilian to give him a ride…"

"He probably employed a smile." JJ cracked, to the amusement of both Pen and Emily.

"Anyway," Hotch finished, completely not understanding their inside joke, "He is at the altar and ready to go."

"Fine. Tell him I need a few minutes." Emily said, as she stood and straightened her gown.

The butterflies that she was certain she wouldn't face started as soon as JJ winked at her and mouthed 'you're up next' and turned to walk down the aisle. Emily blew out a breath and stepped into the room. It was ridiculously crowded. Between Derek and her mother they invited half of Washington. God, why couldn't they have eloped? Just as she was about to give in to panic she looked up and saw him. He was wearing his patented 'Emily' smile, reserved just for her. Their eyes met and her panic subsided. He was by her side before she took another step. "I was doing fine on my own." She laughed.

"I wanted to make sure you didn't decide to take a runner."

"I'm not going anywhere, handsome." She assured him. The audience laughed when he pulled her into his arms and kissed her soundly. "I think we might be doing things out of order."

He responded with a wink. "It is us. I think that's pretty much expected." He took both of her hands as they turned to the judge officiating their wedding. "We're ready."

Fifteen minutes later he was kissing her again and she was now Mrs. Derek Morgan. Well, maybe – she hadn't decided what her name was going to be but she was officially married.

The reception was in full swing when she finally was able to sit and talk with JJ. "So, you really don't want this?" This being a loud, hot place, with food and wine overflowing.

JJ laughed. "Absolutely not." Her eyes found Hotch in the crowd. "Although, if it ever happens, he will be wearing a tux." She sighed, dreamily. "That man makes my mouth water."

"I know I've caught you drooling more than once." Emily sighed, "I can't believe this is my wedding." She looked around the room still crowded with people celebrating. Her mom was dancing with Derek. At least she wasn't pulling out the moves she employed on the stripper from the shower.

"I can't believe that most people still don't know you're pregnant." JJ looked over at her enviously. "I'm still waiting for you to balloon out."

"You say the sweetest things." She grinned. "If it makes you feel better, my feet and back are aching and I'm tired."

"You're just saying that to make me feel better."

"I feel a little bloated, too, after dinner."

JJ looked at her with mock horror. "If you're going to get gassy let me know because I've already lived through that tour of duty and it really is Pen's turn." She protested. "I can't be getting all the choice assignments."

Emily was about to respond when the beginning strands of the 'Chicken Dance' started. Both groaned and turned to see Penelope leading the dance. "You were saying?" Emily asked JJ.

"Need a tums?" JJ sighed.

"Hey, just think," Emily said, rubbing her stomach fondly, "When you decide to do this again I'll be right there with you."

JJ smiled. "If I get pregnant, you're going to have another one with me?"

"What?" Emily quickly scanned the room to make sure that Derek didn't hear that comment. He'd be asking her to commit to a timeline. "I didn't say that, I meant I'll know what you're going through."

"You do know that Derek wants more than one, right?" She shook her head at the man in question as he flapped his wings beside Garcia.

"Let me get through this one and then we'll see." Was all Emily would commit to, but she couldn't help but point out to JJ. "You know, you didn't bat an eye when I suggested you get pregnant."

"I…Well…Shut up." JJ sputtered. No one needed to know that the idea was never far from her mind since Jack and Henry first suggested it.

"He's a good dad." Emily remarked as she watched Hotch and Jack attempt to help Henry with the dance moves. The three of them were laughing uproariously. "That's a pretty attractive quality."

"Just one of his many." JJ noted. The music changed to the Electric Slide and her boys decided not to attempt that one. She made eye contact with Hotch as they left the dance floor; then giggled as Pen roped Reid into dancing with her. "This is nice. We need to have more happy times like these."

"I couldn't agree more." Rossi stated sitting down beside the pair. "So," He looked over at JJ. "When are you going to do this?"

"Oh, you first, big guy." JJ told him.

"It's crossed my mind." He admitted openly before shrugging, "I'm Italian, what can I say, we love being in love." He smiled as he spotted Erin making her way over to him.

"Hey, if at first you don't succeed, try, try again." JJ teased.

"Some of us manage to get it right the first time around." Derek stated, joining the group and winking at Emily. "I've come to dance with my wife." He held his hand out for her.

She looked at the group still sliding across the dance floor. "I may be able to do a stand and sway but there is no way I'm getting in that mess."

"You know," Derek said, as he pulled her to her feet, "Our story began on the dance floor."

"The story I heard had something to do with a wall." JJ snarked. "I pretty much figured that was just Emily embellishing."

"I'm feeling magnanimous so I'm going to let that slide." Derek stated. "Especially since it was at your non-wedding that that all began."

"You're welcome." She laughed when he was surprised by her response. "You thought you were going to get a rise out of me, didn't you?" She was momentarily distracted when she spotted Hotch, carrying Henry and holding Jack's hand, approach. "It was the right decision."

"Oh, I love weddings!" Garcia announced, now that she and Reid finished dancing she was ready to sit for a minute. Morgan and Emily still stood by the table and were joined by Hotch and the boys although Jack was quick to drop his dad's hand in favor of sitting by JJ. Her smile grew as Strauss slid in beside Rossi and she could see Kevin making his way over to her. "This is nice." She looked at Reid. "We need to find you a woman."

"One that isn't inflatable." Rossi mumbled.

"Or charges by the hour." Derek added.

Reid took the ribbing good naturedly. "Someone has to take over the role of player on the team."

Derek threw back his head laughing. "Alright, Pretty Boy, I'll leave the title in your hands."

"You're playing days are over." Emily told Derek firmly.

"Oh baby," He smiled, pulling her close, "It's just a different kind of game now. I still got some play in me. It's just all one on one now."

"I don't know how I can hear that and find it adorable, yet repulsive." Emily wondered.

"Love goggles." Garcia proclaimed wisely. "So, have we decided who's next?"

"You!" JJ and Rossi stated.

"I'm game if you are, Gumdrop." Kevin stated causing Penelope to blush and mumble they could talk about it later.

"You know," Hotch said, leaning to whisper in JJ's ear, "Lowe's delivers sand. I could have you a beach built in a matter of hours."

"What about Hawaii, Dad?" Jack asked, innocently, having overheard the comment, causing the team to study the pair in question interestedly.

"What about Hawaii, Jack?" Emily asked the boy.

"JJ wants to visit the beach so we're going to go on a family trip." He announced with a smile, as he snuggled into JJ's side.

"Is that right?" Emily asked looking at the guilty couple.

Not wanting to relinquish all the attention to Jack, Henry nodded vigorously. "Yep. We're going to go in a big plane."

"Isn't that interesting?" She narrowed her eyes as she stared at JJ.

"Interesting?" Garcia growled. "I think it's downright sneaky. You both look guilty, by the way."

"What are we missing?" Rossi asked Morgan.

"Our little love birds are skipping off to Hawaii to get married without us." Garcia informed the team.

"They wouldn't do that…" His eyes narrow as well as he too noted the guilty expressions on the pair. "Well I'll be damned."

Jack, intuitive little soul that he was, turned to JJ. "I didn't say anything wrong, did I?"

JJ hugged him closer. "No, you didn't." She slipped her hand into Hotch's and announced. "We were going to tell you, but not tonight, it's Derek and Emily's day."

"You can't stop there, Peaches." Garcia squealed. "Finish, tell us what?"

"Yeah, tell us, Jay." Emily encouraged.

Arm settled securely around Jack, JJ looked up at Hotch, holding Henry. She squeezed his hand and announced. "We're getting married."

"Are you going to go through with it this time?" Rossi questioned.

JJ never turned to look at Rossi; her only action was to lace her fingers with Hotch's. "Yep. I most definitely am."

"Good for you, kiddo." He said softly. He chuckled to himself. "Remind me never to play poker with her. You really had me fooled."

"After we get married Hotch is going to find some fairy dust and give mommy a baby." Henry announced.

As the team just processed that statement in startled silence, JJ looked up at Hotch and laughed. "Yeah, I told you that one would come back to haunt you."

"I'm not sure I want to know." Morgan stated, his shoulders shaking from laughter.

"Emily is the one that started it by telling Henry that you gave her your love and it put a baby in her belly. So when the boys found out that Aaron and I loved one another Henry started checking my stomach for a baby. And Aaron told him that Emily forgot to tell him about the fairy dust." JJ snorted. "Fairy dust."

"Where did you get your fairy dust, Derek?" Henry asked sincerely.

Derek looked at the little cherub so patiently awaiting his response. "So you're going fly in a big plane to Hawaii, huh, buddy? That's going to be awesome."

**Thanks for reading!**


	20. Chapter 20

**London Calling Chapter 20**

**Disclaimer – Not Mine.**

**A/N – My timeline has always been a little fluid but I'm setting this chapter for the present week. This story begins on Friday (reasoning that Monday, President's Day would be a holiday). I hadn't planned on Hotch and JJ nuptials but then decided they deserved a wedding too. **

Hotch found her out on the patio staring into the night sky. "Hey." He slipped his hands around her slim waist and pulled her close. "You're being awfully quiet."

"Are the boys asleep?" She asked, leaning back into him.

"They were out before their head's hit the pillow." Hotch told her.

"They had a busy day." It was a ten hour flight, then they arrived at the Hilton Hawaiian Village and the boys had been captivated by both the koi and the penguins, then after a light dinner the family walked down the beach where they watched the waves crash into the shore. They were both excited by the prospect of going into the ocean tomorrow.

"So what's going on with you?" Hotch wanted to know. "Are you getting cold feet?" There were times when he was surprised himself at how quickly they had moved, but it felt right, natural, so he didn't question it. He was just grateful that she chose him.

JJ turned in his arms. "Absolutely not." She told him honestly. "I was just thinking."

"About?" He prompted.

"I wonder if we shouldn't have done this back home with the team." She sighed.

Hotch leaned down and placed a soft kiss at her temple. "Whew. You had me worried there for a minute."

JJ grinned up at him. "No I did not."

"You could have." He told her earnestly.

"I knew the first time I slept with you that I was going to marry you. I've pursued you relentlessly…"

Hotch raised a brow. "You pursued me? I staked my claim at the airport. I believe I kissed you first."

"Please, I was giving you the go ahead signs."

"The 'go ahead signs'?" He asked questioningly.

"I kept giving you subtle hints. Didn't I ask you to drive me to the airport? Honestly, I thought I was going to have to just show up naked to get your attention."

He captured her lips in a thorough kiss. "That would have definitely worked." His hand caressed her cheek and then rested on the back of her neck. "Do you want to change our plans, sweetheart?"

His gentle tone brought tears to her eyes and had her confessing. "I feel bad that the team isn't here with us. I know I was the one that said I wanted it to be just you and me and the boys …"

"But now you want to share it with the other people that you love." He finished. "So we'll have another ceremony when we get home." He shrugged, "We were planning on having a dinner anyway. Marrying you twice isn't exactly a hardship."

She lifted her eyes to his. "That might work." Then maybe she wouldn't feel so bad for essentially eloping. "Everyone was so supportive and thoughtful and I know that they wanted to be part of this." Rossi even went so far as to arrange for them to be married on a private beach at the home of one of his literary contemporary's.

"I thought Garcia was especially thoughtful." He told her recalling the basket she had provided for the pair. "In fact, if you can be quiet we could probably sample some stuff tonight." His hand skimmed down her side.

His playful tactics were working. "Did you forget that we have two young boys sharing a suite with us?"

"They have their own room. We'll keep the door open, and I've blocked the door leading to the main hallway." He had already turned her around and was walking her back into the room. The soft sounds of their sleeping boys could be heard in the adjoining room. "Tonight is the last time you'll have sex as Jennifer Jareau."

JJ stopped the progress. "You know I'll still be Jennifer Jareau tomorrow."

"I already saw the forms that you filled out to have your named changed to Hotchner." He smirked, heading for the dresser he'd watched her put her clothes away in.

JJ frowned at him. "That was supposed to be a surprise."

After a quick search he pulled the teddy out and handed it to her. She could see his barely contained glee. "I was surprised." He had been stunned and elated at the discovery. His JJ so was very independent he hadn't considered that she would willingly change her name.

"Do you know why I decided to change my name?" She asked unbuttoning her jeans and letting them slide from her legs. Stepping out of them she moved closer to him, shedding the light cotton top she wore as she approached. She loved seeing the arousal flare in his eyes. "Because if I didn't then Haley would always be Mrs. Hotchner, and you're mine. I want the world to know that."

"You know what?" Hotch asked, stepping out of his own jeans. "You don't need this." He pulled the teddy from her hands and let it fall to the floor.

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She woke the following morning to an empty bed. "Aaron?" Frowning she got out of bed and made her way across the suite to the boys room. "Boys?" She wasn't alarmed, just puzzled. Moving back to the main room she stood wondering where they could have gone. The knock on the door startled her. She peeked through the peephole expecting to see her boys on the other side but was surprised to see room service.

"Good morning, Ma'am."

"I didn't order…" She faltered as she noticed the bouquet of Forget Me Nots.

"I know, Ma'am, Mr. Hotchner arranged everything." The waiter slid the tray into the room. If you need anything at all, please do not hesitate to contact us." With that he turned and left the room leaving JJ still trying to grasp what was happening. She picked up the note from the tray.

Morning Beautiful. Happy Wedding Day. The boys and I are off to take care of some last minute wedding details. You are to have a restful day of peace and relaxation pampering yourself. Your spa appointment begins at 10:00. I'll see you at sunset.

JJ frowned down at the tray. It was bad enough she was feeling guilty that she let Emily and Pen back home but now she wasn't even spending the day with Hotch and the boys? She appreciated the gesture but honestly sometimes she wished he would ask her before he just did stuff. Grumbling she pulled the lid off the room service and decided that she had worked up an appetite the previous even and it did look pretty good.

She found herself standing at the entrance of the Mandara Spa shortly before ten rolling her shoulders she decided to make the best of it.

"Aloha." She was greeted as soon as she walked in.

"Hi my name is Jennifer Jareau, I have an appointment."

"Yes, right this way. Your party awaits you."

Her party? The hostess must be confused. She started to correct her when they turned a corner and Emily and Pen suddenly appeared.

"How?" She gasped, dumbfounded. "When?"

"Oh Peaches, you didn't really think you wanted us NOT to be here did you?" Garcia teased as she pulled the surprised blonde into a hug.

"No." JJ laughed, tickled, amazed and unbelievably relieved to find them there. "But how?"

"Hotch knew that you'd want us here. He's feeling supremely smug this morning. He wanted to be here to see your face but he also wanted to give you this day." Emily told her, embracing her as well.

"How in the world did you get past the check in? Did you fly over with a plane of convention bound doctors?" JJ asked the ready to pop brunette.

Emily laughed. "Do you have any idea of how much disposable income Dave has? The studio that is courting him for movie rights provided their jet. And a nurse."

JJ's jawed dropped. "No way."

"Cute little blonde." Emily confirmed. "Although she was much more interested in taking Reid's pulse than mine."

"Get out." She pictured their intellectual friend getting flustered.

Emily couldn't resist adding, "Reid might actually get laid in Hawaii."

JJ groaned at the lame joke. "Wow. I'm so glad that you guys didn't listen to me. You wait until I get a hold of my soon to be husband though, he let me mope last night and didn't even break."

"Your bridegroom is a pretty special guy."

JJ spun around and discovered her final surprise. "Mom?"

"Hey baby." Sandy Jareau enveloped her daughter in a hug. "You didn't really think I would miss your wedding, did you?"

JJ looked at the three in shock. "I, oh, wow." She bit her bottom lip as she sniffled. "I am really happy." She pressed a hand to her stomach, now jittery with nerves. "I'm getting married today."

"Yeah, so we need to get to work. Looks like you didn't get a lot of sleep last night." Emily said with a grin. "Practicing for the honeymoon?"

JJ returned her grin. "This is what a satisfied woman looks like in the morning. It's a shame you don't have any experience with it." She winked at her. "Don't give up on Derek just yet. He could get better with age."

"I guess I'll have to let you know when he gets as old as Hotch."

JJ narrowed her eyes. "So next year?"

"Please, you'll be needing Viagra for Hotch by the time Derek reaches his age." Emily's mouth dropped. "That's it, isn't it? Hotch takes Viagra, that's why he's such a love machine."

"Uh." JJ scoffed, "I hardly think so. He's a virile man; he doesn't need any pharmaceutical help."

"Do they do this often?" Sandy Jareau asked Penelope watching her daughter and her friend ping pong back and forth.

"All the time." Penelope sighed. "You know, as much fun as it is listening to the two of you smack talk one another, what do you say we get this thing started? JJ is getting married at sunset."

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JJ smiled as Henry walked into the room. Her little boy looked adorable in his tuxedo. "It's just like Jack and Hotch's." He informed her. Henry was going to walk her down the aisle where they would meet Hotch and Jack.

"Are you ready, Mommy?" Blue eyes stared up at her with barely contained excitement.

"I am, my little man." She responded. "What about you? Are you ready buddy?" She shared a smile with him as he nodded. "Then I think it's time for us to go and get married!" She grasped his small hand in hers and walked out of the enclosure she'd been waiting in towards the makeshift altar. Her smile widened as she locked eyes with Hotch looking breathtakingly handsome in his tux.

She couldn't resist hugging Jack before slipping her hand in Hotch's. They stood, all four of them, hand in hand, as JJ and Hotch repeated their wedding vows as the sun dropped below the horizon.

"That was so sweet." Penelope gushed, as she blew her nose once again. "Destination weddings totally rock." She announced as she looked over at Kevin. "Maybe we should do this."

Derek chuckled. "You ladies have completely changed your stance on holy matrimony. Two weddings in less than a year and now my Baby Girl is talking about making it three."

"I think I'm going to have to give up that moniker pretty soon." Garcia said with a pout, rubbing Emily's protruding stomach.

"You will always be my Baby Girl." Derek stated, squeezing her arm affectionately.

"No really, Derek, you're going to have a baby girl." She needlessly pointed out.

"Speaking of babies," Dave started, grateful for the opening, "Was there a particular reason the two of you rushed to the altar? Should we be anticipating an expansion to the Hotchner Jareau brood soon?"

Hotch grinned at JJ. "Should we tell them?"

JJ giggled into his side as the team stared at them with various expressions of joy, disbelief and shock.

"Are you serious?" Dave laughed as Derek and Reid grumbled reaching for the wallets. "I told you, JJ is glowing and Hotch is walking around like he's hit the jackpot. I told you she was knocked up."

"We're just teasing you." JJ told him. "I'm not pregnant, Dave."

"Not for lack of trying." Emily mumbled.

"I'm not pregnant, yet." JJ amended.

"We didn't even have to practice." Derek felt obligated to point out.

"But that doesn't mean you shouldn't." JJ advised him. "Then maybe Emily would glow, too."

"Eh, I'm too tired to glow these days." She grinned over at them. "Which is why it is really nice to have friends in high places, I couldn't imagine having to fly commercial over here. But," she was quick to add for JJ's benefit, "I'm sure I'll be glowing again soon."

JJ snorted, "You think you're tired now? Wait till little Princess Morgan makes her appearance. Late night feedings, dirty diapers…"

"Teething, shots, fever…" Hotch sighed wistfully, as he intertwined his fingers with JJ's.

"Jeez," Rossi interrupted. "Here's to being old. I'm glad I don't have to worry about any of that."

"Here's to being single." Reid added. But everyone caught his not too subtle look at the nurse that attended the wedding with him. Their boy might not be single much longer.

JJ laid her head on Hotch's shoulder as she watched her boys walk the sandy beach hand and hand with her mom. Jack was already as enchanted with his new grandma as she was with him. They had changed out of their tuxs after the ceremony and were now racing in and out of the tide.

"You want to join them?" Hotch asked, noticing where her gaze was. She nodded slightly and they slipped away from the team.

They weren't quite to the boys when JJ stopped. "Thank you." She rose on her toes and placed a soft kiss on Hotch's mouth. "Thank you for knowing me so well that you knew that I would want all of my family here today. You went to so much trouble to make sure everything was special for me."

"I'll tell you a secret but you can't repeat it." Hotch told her, placing his hands on her hips. "It was every bit as important to me as it was to you to have everyone here."

"You're a big softie."

"I'd prefer if we kept that between the two of us." He bent and captured her lips once more. "I wish I could have seen your face when you saw Emily and Penelope."

"It occurs to me that we now have several possible sitters for the boys." JJ said mischievously moving closer to her husband.

"The boys are going to fly home with the team and your mom in two days. We're going to fly to Maui for a week."

JJ's mouth dropped apparently the surprises weren't yet over. "I didn't pack enough clothes." She protested, already mentally calculating her wardrobe.

"You won't need any clothes." Hotch assured her. "We can start the brood enhancement."

"Have I told you lately how much I love you?" JJ asked, throwing her arms around him.

"Not nearly enough to make me tired of hearing it again." He told her, kissing her deeply. "I love you, JJ." He smiled tenderly down at her. They were just about ready to continue their trek to the beach when the noise behind them exploded with excitement.

"I said I'm not ready." Emily could be heard complaining.

"Ms. Prentiss, you might not be ready but the baby is." Stephanie, the on loan nurse, advised her.

"You don't understand. I'm already registered at Fairfax Inova and I'm not due for fifteen more days. Everyone knows first babies come late. I refuse to have my daughter in Hawaii. My doctor told me it was perfectly safe to travel as long as I followed his guidelines, and I have!" Emily wailed.

"Honey…" Derek started only to be stopped by a mutinous look from his wife. "JJ!" He hollered. "JJ!" He turned to the last spot he'd seen the bride and noticed that she and Hotch were walking back towards them. "Jay, you've got to make her listen to reason."

The panicked looks from both Derek and Emily were a dead giveaway but JJ still asked. "Hey Em, what's going on?"

"Do you think you could work your magic to get our plane readied to fly back to Virginia? You used to do it all the time. You ask any of the pilots that fly the BAU jet and they'll tell you that you were always their favorite, no one was as competent as you in reading us for flight." Emily pleaded.

JJ smiled as she looked into the terrified eyes of her friend. "I could do that, or," She said as she reached out and took her friends hand, "Or we could find a nice hospital here on Oahu. Maybe we can just go and check it out?"

"We're kind of in the middle of a celebration here." Emily argued.

"Ms. Prentiss' water broke, we need to stop negotiating with her and get her to the hospital." The nurse interrupted.

JJ ignored her completely. "And obviously this baby takes after her daddy, always needing to be the center of attention."

"Standing right here Jay." Derek mumbled.

"But I'm not ready I still haven't finished 'What to Expect' yet."

Her excuses were getting more pathetic but JJ knew that it was just nerves. "You know what? Reid can read it for you on the way to the hospital and fill you in on whatever you might have missed."

"I don't know, JJ." She winced slightly as another contraction hit her.

JJ saw her tense slightly. "So, what are you thinking here Em? You want me to drag you down to the water and do this au natural? Because probably the only one here that has actually enough medical know how to actually deliver a baby is going to be Dr. Reid, and I don't think you want Spence looking at your hoo ha."

She watched as Emily's eyes grew big and looked over at Reid. "We should probably get to the hospital."

"You sure? I don't want to rush you." JJ told her even as she helped her stand.

"How is it that you always know what to say to her?" Morgan asked as he slipped a supportive arm around his wife's waist.

"She's fluent in crazy." Dave responded, earning him a smack from Erin. "I was just teasing. Everyone knows all you women are fluent." He mumbled the last part and was rewarded with a smack from Garcia.

"You realize that we totally get to be the godparents, right?" JJ stated to no one in particular.

"Hey!" Garcia protested.

"Yeah," Reid added, also disagreeing with JJ's supposition. "You yourself said you couldn't even deliver the baby if needed."

"Hello, whose day is this?" JJ bickered back. "Did either of you get married today? No, I don't think so. And she would have delivered on the beach if it were up to any of you."

"Well if you would have just married at home we wouldn't be moving this reception to the local hospital." Dave pointed out.

"I'm really sorry this happened today." Emily said, effectively defusing the hopeful godparent squabble.

JJ scoffed. "Don't be ridiculous. I shouldn't have thought I could get married without all of you here and forced you to fly thousands of miles away from home when you were hugely pregnant."

"I owed you a long flight to support you. After all, you came to London when I called you." Emily sniffed.

"Hey, what are friends for?"

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"Look at her." Penelope sobbed. "Have you ever seen anything so beautiful?"

They were crowded around Emily's hospital bed gazing with adoration at the newest member of their family.

"You did good kid." Dave said, dropping a kiss on first Emily's brow, then Morgan's.

"Your wife looks pretty good holding an infant." Derek told Hotch.

Hotch's eyes met JJ's. "Yeah, she does."

"Yes she really does." Emily smiled. "Don't you think you two should get started on your honeymoon?"

"I'm fairly sure that's what they were doing when they went missing for about an hour earlier." Dave stated, enjoying the blush that lit JJ's cheeks. "Although the where and the how I'm not sure of. I just know they both came back looking a little too satisfied."

"Without the drinks they left to get." Reid pointed out.

"Oh." JJ looked up at Hotch. "I guess we forgot." She said completely unapologetically.

"So do you have a name?" Erin asked them.

"Ava." "Alyssa." The new parents turned to one another with a frown.

"Penelope is a nice name, it's unique." The Technical Analyst advised them.

Derek looked back at the Section Chief. "I guess we're still thinking about it."

The baby began to fuss and JJ handed her to Hotch to give back to Emily. "I guess we should get out of here and let you get some rest. Do you need anything before we go?"

Emily looked up at Derek. "I think we're good."

"I think we're pretty darn perfect."

**Thanks for reading…. And for those of you that review, follow and favorite a HUGE thank you. I really appreciate the support.**


	21. Chapter 21

**London Calling Chapter 21 - Epilogue**

**Disclaimer: Not Mine**

**A/N – Here's the end to my first ever multi chapter fic. Warning: it's a little syrupy. Okay, a lot. I had a really hard time deciding how to finish this off and I'm a little sad to have it come to an end. Set three years in the future.**

Fourth of July 2016

"So, what do we know about her?" It was the first thing Emily asked as she entered the house, moving through the Hotchner residence with the ease of a frequent visitor. She was carrying her three year old daughter, Ava, on one hip with a huge diaper bag slung over her other arm.

"Well, hello, Em." Hotch mumbled, well used to his wife's girlfriends. "We know that Reid likes her enough to bring her in front of you crazies." Hotch stated, carrying his youngest son, Owen, down the stairs into the family room. "That should say it all."

"You'd think, wouldn't you?" Morgan grumbled, struggling to move through the door while holding a pair of squirming twins. "Little help here." He called to his wife.

"Come here, baby." Penelope held out her arms to relieve him of one of his precious bundles. The little girl cooed and smiled at her godmother.

"Sure, take the easy one." Morgan commented as his son's hand made contact with his face once again. "You didn't do any 'research' on this one did you Pen?" He asked with a stern tone. Reid's last girlfriend had a drunk and disorderly from college on her record that Pen had discovered and mistakenly questioned. She hadn't lasted long after that discovery.

"Honestly, you make it sound like that's a bad thing. Whoever Reid ends up with will, by default, be spending time with Ava, Alyssa and Caleb, not to mention Jack, Henry, Owen and whoever else may come along." Garcia replied, defending her actions.

The whoever else comment had both Hotch and Morgan whipping around. "Do you know something Garcia?" Both men looked curiously at their wives who were conveniently otherwise preoccupied.

"Oh please, I'll be 46 this year." Emily griped, having heard the comment, "I can hardly handle the three we have without help. I'm almost too tired to even think about sex." She looked at Penelope. "Tell me again why isn't it your turn?" She swiveled again looking around the room. "Where is Kevin, by the way?"

The bubbly analyst just laughed. "He's at a family thing that I did not want to attend, and it is definitely not my turn. I told you, I've decided to be Aunt Penny. That way I can love them and spoil them and give them back." She placed a smacking kiss on her honorary niece.

Morgan made a face as his son's turned bright red, knowing exactly what it meant. "I wish we would have considered that. Then we might still be having sex." He told his wife as he handed her the now smelly boy.

Emily frowned at him as she took their son. "Sex is the reason we have three beautiful children. It's the end result." She felt obliged to point out to him.

He wagged his brows at her. "Can you remind me what it was like? Because I don't recall it happening lately."

"Sucks to be you." Hotch said with a sly grin as his boy nestled sweetly in the crook of his neck. "I got lucky last night."

JJ shook her head. "Should we be talking about s-e-x when there are young e-a-r-s present?" She questioned moving to take her sleepy boy from his dad. "And you quit bragging."

Hotch looked down at his wife unapologetic. "I get a lot of grief for being the oldest man on the team, honey." He told her as he dropped a kiss on her waiting mouth. "I think they're all just jealous because I have the hottest wife." He ignored Morgan's snort.

Rossi had surprised them all by retiring the previous year and becoming a house husband. To be fair he was still writing but most of the time he puttered around the house. It was nice as they always had an emergency contact on hand for the kids.

"I think it's probably because they all wish they were as virile as you." JJ responded back.

"Eh, you two still make me sick." Emily said snidely, but there was a grin on her face, her smile widened considerably as Henry and Jack came bounding down the stairs. Ava would be in rapture over their appearance. On cue the little girl bounded starry eyed after Jack.

"Hey Ava." Jack Hotchner smiled down at the young girl while Henry made his way over to Emily to see Caleb.

Emily smiled as Ava lifted her arms for Jack to pick her up. "You need a girl around here." She told JJ.

"JJ likes being the only girl in the house." Hotch commented with a smile at the same time his wife said, "Maybe the next one."

"Wait." Hotch's head spun around. "What?" He looked at JJ standing just a few feet away from him in a tee shirt and shorts. He always thought she looked beautiful and today was no exception; he couldn't detect any visible signs that their brood was expanding.

JJ grinned at him studying her intently. "Listen, you're the one that's always ready."

"Ready for what dad?" Jack asked.

Ignoring his son he asked at his wife. "Are we saying it's a done deal or are we thinking we want another one?" Hotch asked, while the rest of the room's occupants enjoyed his uncertainty.

"Which answer would you be happiest with?" JJ replied with a head tilt.

He stared at her for a minute and knew it didn't matter. "Either is fine." He answered sincerely, the truth of his response evident in his eyes.

"Your dad is one smooth dude." Morgan said to Henry and Jack as JJ turned and crossed the room back to where he stood and kissed him with much more warmth than she had previously.

"I knew you looked extra glow-y." Garcia told her smugly as they separated.

"Do they always kiss like that?" Emily asked Henry.

The young boy looked over at his parents smiling goofily at one another and turned back around answering nonchalantly. "Yep. All the time."

"Hey," Garcia said, as a thought occurred to her, "You and Jack met Uncle Spence's girlfriend, what do you think?" She asked the small boy.

The little boy shrugged and scrunched up his face in thought. "She's got blonde hair like my mommy." Henry answered.

Jack shook his head in agreement. "Yeah, but she's not as pretty. She is nice though."

"Smooth is obviously a family trait." Morgan scoffed.

"She is nice." Henry said with a nod. "But I don't like her as much as I like you, Aunt Em."

"Or Aunt Penny." Jack added, politely.

Emily shared a smile with Derek. "Obviously our son is going to need to spend some quality time with Hotch." Her grin grew. "In fact, maybe _you_ need to take lessons. It couldn't hurt." She told him teasingly.

He responded back with a playful. "Sure, as soon as you start putting out like JJ does."

"What did you put out, Mommy?" An inquisitive Henry asked.

"Oh, please, you answer that one Derek." JJ said, deceptively calm.

"Hey, little man, are you going to help me with the grill today?" Derek asked, hoping to completely sidetrack the young boy. When that failed he asked. "Where the heck is Reid?" He needed someone to distract the group.

"We're here." Morgan breathed a sigh of relief as Erin and Dave strolled through the door. Both were looking chic and relaxed from their recent trip to the Greek islands, and fortunately they came bearing gifts so that took the heat off of him, momentarily.

After distributing the loot they brought with them Dave asked no one in particular, "So, what's new?"

"Mommy puts out." Henry commented as Morgan groaned loudly.

"No, no, no, buddy that is not what Uncle Derek said." He moved over to the young boy and placed his hand on his shoulder, all the while keeping his eye on his mother. At this point JJ frightened him far more than Hotch.

"It is what you said, Uncle Derek." The oldest Hotchner child courteously informed him.

"Do I want to know?" Dave asked.

"Did your mommy put out the plates for the barbeque?" Erin asked a completely confused Henry who turned to his mother to see her wink and nod at him. "Yes? Do you think you can you help me carry them out to the patio? Then you can tell me everything you've been doing this summer." She gave the boy a tight hug. "Uncle Dave and I have missed you." She led the small boy through to the kitchen, pausing to glare at Derek slightly as she passed.

A repentant Derek looked over at JJ. "I am so sorry."

"Hey, aren't we missing someone?" Dave asked, still holding a gift bag. "Where's the kid?" He asked, looking around for their missing member.

"The _kid_ is bringing a date." Hotch shared. "He's delaying the inevitable. For some reason it never goes well." He looked pointedly at the trio of women still in the room.

Rossi whistled. "He must really like this one if he's willing to bring her to meet the three of them." He laughed as he made the way around the room kissing babies and women as he came to them. "You look good, Bella, you're practically glowing." Rossi told JJ as he gave both her and the youngest Hotchner a kiss. He turned and looked at Hotch closely. "And you're looking satisfied." He stated, hugging him affectionately. "Do I detect the arrival of yet another Hotchner?"

Garcia laughed. "We should totally go to Vegas, Dave." She told him. "We're the only ones with intuition in this room full of profilers." She shared proudly. "I knew it the minute I saw her today."

"Are you having another baby, JJ?" Jack asked his stepmother after following the adult's conversation.

JJ shared a look with her husband before turning to the small boy. "What would you think about that, Jack? Does that sound like a good idea?"

"Do you think maybe this time we can get a girl?" He asked.

JJ smiled. "That would be nice, but I'm not sure what we'll get. We just have to wait and see." She smiled as the young boy came over to hug her. "Another boy wouldn't be so bad, would it?"

The little boy shook his head as his little brother smiled down at him. "We're not going to get two babies like Aunt Em and Uncle Derek are we?" He remembered the adjustment they had with just the one baby, he couldn't imagine two.

"I don't think so buddy." His dad told him. "Usually you have to have a history of twins in your family."

"Or you could just be really, really lucky." Emily told them, reminding the group that neither she nor Derek had any family history of it.

"Actually…" The voice of Spencer Reid broke in and began to give statistics of multiple births. He paused and looked around the room. "Why are we discussing the chances of a multiple birth?" He looked at Emily. "You know if the individual has already had a pregnancy that resulted in multiples…"

"Oh no." Emily interrupted. "Not happening. The Prentiss-Morgan family is finished. Done." The look she shot her husband said the topic wasn't up for negotiation.

"Hey." JJ stated, looking around him. "I thought you were bringing a guest?"

"Yeah, she's kind of nervous about coming. I may have told her about experiences with previous girlfriends." He told them with a wince.

"Well, Spence, she shouldn't worry about how you were with previous girls, relationships are all different." JJ remarked.

Realizing that he'd given the wrong impression he quickly added, "Oh, right, no, she's not worried about _me_ she's worried about meeting the three of _you_."

Rossi, Morgan, and Hotch all chuckled at his honesty.

"I may have told her about the background checks and some of the other methods you've incorporated in your familial integration rituals." He said with some hesitation.

"I couldn't even find her name from your emails." Garcia defended. "Not that I tried." She amended when everyone turned to look at her. "Did she just say, Pen?" She asked, holding Alyssa up in front of her. "I swear she just said…"

"Nice try." Morgan moved and intercepted Alyssa from a now rambling Pen. "I, for one, hope this next baby is a boy too, I fear for my two angels with their influence." He looked over at Hotch for support.

"I'm still getting over the comment regarding my wife's activities." He scoffed, plucking Owen back from JJ and following Morgan out to the patio. "Jack, why don't you bring Ava and come outside?"

Rossi gave Reid a bus on the cheek and stopped long enough to claim a now clean Caleb from his mother's clutches leaving the young genius alone with the women. "So, JJ's pregnant again?" Reid asked no one in particular as the room suddenly cleared.

"So, Reid, where's the honey?" Emily questioned.

"She's coming." He assured them. "I should probably go and see if there is anything that I need to help with." He executed a sidestep in an attempt at escape.

JJ stepped in front of him, effectively stopping his forward progress. "I'm kind of offended that you would think to warn her about us." She told him with a pout.

"We're your family. We look out for you. It's our job." Emily told him.

Reid frowned at them. "I think this would probably be a good time to point out that I'm a grown man. I am going to be 34 this year." He argued. "I hold multiple degrees, I'm a certified genius, and I'm licensed and qualified to carry a gun. I help hunt down the vilest beings humanity has to offer." He argued, offended that they seemed to think him incapable of finding a suitable woman.

"That is true." Emily smiled, looking at the other two.

Garcia giggled as Reid narrowed his eyes. "You guys just like flustering me."

"We totally like flustering you." JJ nodded. "Reid, if you like this girl, I'm sure we're going to like her."

He smiled as he looked at the women that had truly become his family. "You won't embarrass me by telling her stupid stories of things that I've done over the years, will you?"

Garcia's giggle exploded into a full belly laugh. "Oh kid, come on, of course we will." She looked at him as if he were naïve, which he was. "We love you; again, this is our job. It's what we do."

He stared at them for a minute before confessing. "Just so you know I'm pretty sure that I'm in love with her."

"Yeah?" JJ's eyes misted. "So tell us about her."

"Her name is London, her parents are both professors, they met while taking a semester abroad. She's smart and funny and…" The doorbell rang and his eyes widened. "Oh God, she's here." He jumped up and raced to answer the door.

JJAHEPDM

"So, wow, number four." Emily asked, rocking Caleb as JJ brought in a worn out Owen and sank down on the chair across from her.

"Yep." She uttered a soft sigh as the little boy snuggled into her.

"And you said you were done." Emily scoffed.

JJ looked up at her friend with a mischievous smile.

"Oh no, here it comes." Emily groaned. "Now I'm going to have to listen to some gross story about how Hotch is a love god and does really bad, really good things to you."

JJ smiled. "I get wet just looking at him."

"Eww. Didn't we talk about oversharing?"

"I'm sorry, were you not the one that told me that you had car sex in your minivan, and let me just pause while I enjoy the fact that you, one, drive a minivan and, two, you had a quickie in it because you couldn't wait to get back home." She raised a brow. "Who overshares?"

Emily chuckled. "Yeah, I think we might both be guilty of that one."

"So, to continue in that vein, why is Morgan complaining about lack of sex?" JJ wondered.

Emily rolled her eyes. "Pfft. He's the one that fell asleep last night! I went to give Alyssa a bottle and told him I'd be right back, he was out, down for the count, when I got back." Her voice was filled with indignation.

"That bastard."

"Thank you. I totally needed that release." She sniffed. "But," She confided, "Fran is coming down in a couple of weeks and maybe both his sisters. Derek's talking about going to a bed and breakfast for the weekend to recoup." She gave her friend a meaningful look.

"They say it's for you, but you come home even more tired than when you left." JJ warned.

"God I hope so." Emily snorted. "I could stand a few days of my body being used for other purposes than pack mule."

JJ giggled. "I'd tell you that I knew what you're talking about, but I live with a genuine love god so my body always gets treated well." She placed a hand on her still flat stomach. "Plus, Owen is two and pretty much sleeps through the night." She admitted. "Talk to me next year and I'm sure that I'll be envious of you."

Emily smiled. "You are glowing, you know."

"I'm pretty happy." She looked around the room, past the French doors out to the patio where her immediate and extended family gathered and across the room at her best friend. "Thank you."

Emily looked back at her puzzled. "For what?"

"I don't know, for calling me, for needing my help, and for giving me the courage to go after what I wanted." She answered, brushing a lock of hair off of her son's face.

"You're welcome." Emily said with a smile. "Thanks for answering, and for coming when I called, and for encouraging me to follow my heart." She looked out at Derek holding the daughter that had been conceived on a night of reckless passion. He still managed to elicit that response from her. "God we're getting maudlin."

"You want me to tell you about this thing Aaron does that I swear makes me curl my toes and causes my eyes to roll back in my head?" She shook her head. "Nah, never mind I'm sure Derek couldn't elicit the same response."

"You know I still don't believe he's as good as you say. I think you're all trash talk." Emily argued.

"One of these days I'll show you a home movie."

Emily laughed out loud. "There is no way you have yourself on film, either Rossi or Garcia would have found it by now."

Just the opening JJ was looking for. "If we did we would be a little more subtle than you and Derek, I mean, come on, anything titled 'Bears win championship' that's not dated in the 80s is suspect."

Emily shook her head in agreement. "You'd think he'd be smarter than that."

"If he would have marked it Ava's birth or something along those lines Rossi would have never bothered with it." JJ pointed out.

"You know I'm going to have to search your house now." Emily advised her, convinced that maybe her friend did indeed have a home movie.

"I don't know why you just can't accept my word that my husband is, in fact, a sex god." JJ griped.

It was an old argument. "Come on, Jay. It's not like he has a body like Morgan."

"You can have a body and not know what to do with it." JJ argued. "And he has a very nice body thank you very much. Have you seen his ass? Have you seen his talented hands, his sensual mouth?" She sighed contentedly.

"I will go so far as to concede that apparently he does it for you."

JJ searched for him on the patio. "Yeah," She breathed, "he does."

"How did he not know you were pregnant?" She shook her head. "You've already got that glazed expression on your face."

"You mean the one you wore the entire time you were pregnant?" JJ scoffed as she gestured for her husband.

Emily laughed as Hotch entered the house, the poor unsuspecting sap. "Hey I was just coming to get you. They are just about to start the fireworks."

"I was hoping you'd carry Owen upstairs for me." JJ asked him sweetly.

He gave her a puzzled expression for just a second before moving quickly to relieve her of the small weight. "Okay, sure, are you feeling okay?"

"She was just about to go lay down." Emily quipped, as she rose from the couch with Caleb and moved quickly to the door.

Hotch was immediately attentive. "Why didn't you say something?" She heard him ask, followed by a surprised, "What?" then a low intimate chuckle.

"Where are JJ and Hotch?" Morgan asked as she stepped out on the patio. "They're going to miss the fireworks."

"I don't think they care. They're making their own." Emily told him.

Morgan's head swung back towards the house. "Really?"

"Oh yeah." She nodded.

"That lucky bastard."

"Says the man that couldn't stay awake through his daughters feeding." She handed him their son. "You were going to get sooo lucky last night."

He took an opportunity to appreciate his wife's long, lean body. "It's just mean to tell me that now."

"No, mean would be telling you…" She leaned up and whispered all the naughty things she had wanted to do the previous evening in his ear, hotly, as she pressed her body against him and finished by gently biting his ear lobe.

"Does anyone want to babysit?" Morgan asked hoarsely as his wife sashayed away from him. "Please."

There was nothing but the smoke left when JJ and Hotch stepped out on the patio. "I love the Fourth of July." JJ sighed.

"You missed the fireworks." Garcia pointed out.

"I didn't miss anything Pen, my life is filled with fireworks."

Garcia narrowed her eyes. "I can see that, Peaches. Is that the shirt you were wearing earlier?" She looked at the small smile forming on Hotch's face.

Rossi chuckled. "You'd think Hotch would have better control. FBI man, he's supposed to be all stoic and staid."

A thoroughly relaxed Hotch shrugged. "Not at home and not with my family."

"And never when your wife crooks her finger." Morgan added his hand intertwined with Emily's.

His arm still anchored around JJ's waist Hotch agreed. "Absolutely never."

The petite newcomer sat with Reid and smiled at the antics of the group he considered his family. "Does this happen a lot?"

"Which part? The teasing? Always. The sneaking off to copulate? Surprisingly more often than you would think." He shook his head. "And not just JJ and Hotch, although with JJ pregnant they will be the most frequent offenders. But they've all been guilty of it." He sighed, wondering what she must think of them. "I warned you, they're an odd bunch."

His girlfriend shook her head. "No, I think it's sweet." She laced her hand through his. "It's clear how much they all love each other. You have a really nice family."

Reid looked back at them smiling and laughing with one another. "Yeah, I really do."

And they all lived happily ever after.

**The End.**

**Thank you for reading! And a HUGE thank you for all of you who reviewed, followed and/or favorited this story, I really appreciated the interest and the support.**


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